Rutland Pride June 2023

Where better to enjoy a Great British summer than Rutland & Stamford? This month we’ve a roundup of the biggest and best events taking place not just in June but a little further ahead, too. Of course we’re looking forward to the Rutland Show, but there’s plenty going on besides from live music and opera to wildlife events like Global Birdfair and NGS openings... we’ll also suggest some quirky accommodation, too!

Elsewhere in this edition, we’re letting off steam with a visit to Stapleford Miniature Railway, we’re celebrating St George’s Day at The George of Stamford, and we revisit the consistently lovely Hambleton Hall, too.

Speaking about food and drink, June sees English Wine Week, and so we stop by at The Rutland Vineyard to raise a glass to Zoe and Tim Beaver, who have been establishing their vines for a few years in Ketton. This year’s grape harvest will enable them to make their first vintage which we can’t wait to try next year!

And finally, we’re also paying tribute to an incredible journalist, war correspondent and broadcaster, Michael Clayton, who published his autobiographical memoir of several decades spent working as a journalist and latterly as Editor of Horse & Hound.

Our best wishes, for a great month!

Executive Editor robin@pridemagazines.co.uk

We’re always looking for scenes of Rutland and Stamford to feature on our covers and in the magazines. If you’re a budding photographer, email your pictures to the address above!

HOMES

THE WEALTHIEST PEOPLE IN THE AREA READ PRIDE MAGAZINE

Pride Magazine is delivered free of charge, via Royal Mail, to high value homes in the county. Our circulation is to homes in the top three council tax bands, which are predominantly worth over £300,000. This guarantees the magazine has an affluent readership commensurate with our content.

The magazine is also sold in leading newsagents and supermarkets and we also deliver the magazine to local businesses including selected hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, doctors, dentists, executive motor dealerships and golf clubs. This helps to ensure we have a continued presence, right across our catchment area.

Our titles also have more social media fans than any other local magazine. In addition we have over 45,000 online visitors viewing our magazines free of charge, online, on their tablet, computer, laptop or mobile phone via our website, our app, and via the Readly and Issuu platforms.

If your business would benefit from being showcased to the wealthiest people in the area, please call our friendly sales team on 01529 469977.

THE PRIDE TEAM

Managing Director: Julian Wilkinson.

Advertising Director: Zoie Wilkinson.

General Manager: Matthew Deere.

Executive Editor: Rob Davis.

Sales Executives: Helen Eastaugh, Kim Alford, Aisha Joyce, Amy Meader, Mia Garner, Gemma Mills, Yvette Curry.

Accounts Department: Steve Parrish, Margarita Pavlesevica, Chloe Watson, Tamara Gardner, Bethany Freeman-Burdass.

Customer Care Manager: Mandy Bray.

IT Manager: Ian Bagley.

Web Developer: Joe Proctor.

It pays to shop around for the best mortgage deal.

The events of the past few months have left many of us reeling. Increased living costs, a spate of interest rate rises, and waves of political and financial uncertainty have dented our confidence in the future.

Homeowners coming to the end of a fixed rate mortgage and first-time buyers have been left stunned by the sharp increase in borrowing costs, with average new two- and five-year fixed rate deals now at their highest rates since 2008.

Adding to the uncertainty, lenders have been changing rates and prices, or withdrawing products completely, at short notice.

Oliver Smith, Director at mortgage experts, BCM Wealth Management Ltd in Stamford says: “If you need a new mortgage, now more than ever, it pays to find a trusted adviser and shop around.”

Finding the right mortgage

The right mortgage isn’t always the one with the cheapest interest rate. You need to consider other factors, such as suitability, overall affordability, product fees and early repayment fees. But the right mortgage always starts with the right advice, and the right advice always starts with the right conversation. BCM’s friendly and experienced mortgage advisers take the time to get to know you, understand your situation and guide you through the entire process.

Whatever your circumstances and whatever

kind of mortgage you are looking for, BCM Wealth Management can help.

First-time buyers

Buying your first home, or helping your children or grandchildren buy theirs, is a huge moment. It’s both exciting and daunting in equal measures. The BCM team will explain the range of different mortgages available and help you make the best choice based on current market conditions. In fact, BCM can manage the entire house-buying process, from application to completion, giving you much less to worry about.

Remortgaging

With interest rates rising, many people are

looking for a better mortgage deal. Your home is usually your biggest asset, and remortgaging your property is also a common way to raise capital for extensions or renovations. BCM’s experienced mortgage advisers can lead you through the remortgaging process from start to finish.

Essential advice

BCM Wealth Management has earned a strong reputation for excellent service, with 50 five-star Google reviews. As Oliver Smith explains: “We don't go into a relationship looking to sell you something. Our aim is to help you find the best solution. That’s what really matters to us.”

You’ll find the service very different, giving you friendly, expert mortgage advice and keeping you informed every step of the way.

BCM can help you find the best mortgage, whether you’re employed or self-employed, buying for yourself or helping your children get a foot on the property ladder.

The next step is yours. If you’re looking for a better mortgage deal, speak to a BCM.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep repayments on your mortgage. n

Chat to our specialist mortgage team at BCM Wealth Management, based at 5 Ironmonger Street, Stamford, Lincolnshire, PE9 1PL www.bcmwealth.co.uk 01780 437500

We offer a comprehensive range of first charge mortgages from across the market, which lenders make available to mortgage intermediaries, for which we will be paid a procuration fee by the lender.

BCM Wealth Management Ltd is an appointed representative of and represents only St. James’s Place Wealth Management plc (which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority) for the purpose of advising solely on the Group’s wealth management products and services, more details of which are set out on the Group’s website www.sjp.co.uk/products.

Seal of approval for Hide & Secrets

BURGHLEY HOUSE’S NEW PLAYGROUND TRIED & TESTED BY YOUNGSTERS

It’s official! The lucky youngsters who were first to test our the new playpark in the grounds of Burghley House have confirmed that the new facility is great fun!

Having welcomed its first adventurous visitors in time for the Early May Bank Holiday weekend, Hide & Secrets at Burghley House and Gardens combines play, exploration, and discovery, featuring six fun-packed family play zones and a spectacular Hidden Towers structure.

Whether thrill-seekers or bug-hunters, youngsters can discover sky-high bug towers, clamber over giant mole hills, explore the woodland and climb a huge wooden Magpie’s Nest, before tackling the Hidden Towers with its two enormous slides, climbing walls, wobbly walkways and crawl tunnels.

Themed around William Cecil, the first Lord Burghley, as one of the country’s first chief spymasters, youngsters will also be able to complete their own top-secret missions.

RAF Wittering Appointment

HONORARY AIR COMMODORE APPOINTED

NEW HIGH SHERIFF OF NOTTINGHAMSHIRE

Featuring new Burghley character Cecil the MoleHide & Secrets’ very own chief spymaster – youngsters can join him on their own special missions.

Entrance to the playground is included with admission to the Garden of Surprises and the Sculpture Garden £9/adults; £7.50 children over three. n

WITTERING

Based at RAF Wittering, the 504 Squadron’s Honorary Air Commodore (HAC) has been installed as the new High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire, becoming the first Black woman and Kenyan to hold the title.

Air Commodore Veronica Moraa Picking MBS DL was appointed as the new High Sheriff by the King and will serve in the appointment for one year.

Her installation ceremony, was attended by representatives from 504 Sqn, RAF Wittering and Support Force, including Station Commander, Wing Commander Nikki

Duncan, Support Force Commander, Group Captain Nick Huntley and Officer Commanding Reserves Logistics Support Wing, Wing Commander Andy Valentine.

Other guests included the Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire, Sir John Peace, the High Commissioner of Kenya, HE Mr Manoah Esipisu, and Air Cdre Jo Lincoln, who was the Station Commander at RAF Wittering when Air Cdre Pickering first became the 504 Sqn HAC.

“She is an inspirational and committed ambassador,” said Sqn Ldr Kaye Slater, Officer Commanding of 504 Sqn. n

STAMFORD

Point of Light Award

ALICIA KEARNS PRESENTS ADAM TATE WITH THE PRIME MINISTER’S SPECIAL AWARD...

The county’s local police service has exceeded recruitment targets by increasing it numbers by 340 officers over the past three years. The boost is part of the Police Uplift Programme which was launched to significantly increase officer numbers across the country by 20,000. n

Alicia Kearns MP recently presented local man Adam Tate, from Rutland, with the Prime Minister’s Points of Light Award.

The Prime Minister recognised Adam through this award for founding the organisation ‘Fahr Beyond’ to raise awareness of Fahr’s Disease, a rare, genetically inherited neurological disorder.

‘Fahr Beyond’ is the world’s

only charity dedicated to supporting people with this rare disorder.

Point of Light, recognises outstanding volunteers for the exceptional service they have given to their community. In a personal letter to Adam, Rishi Sunak said that it was ‘fantastic’ that he is helping others to learn about the condition and support other with it.

n See www.fahrbeyond.org

Burghley tickets now on sale

EVENT WILL NOW BE KNOWN AS THE DEFENDER

BURGHLEY HORSE TRIALS FOLLOWING REBRAND

The Defender Burghley Horse Trials box office is now open. Members’ tickets for the autumn event, which takes place from 31st August to 3rd September, are now on sale.

Following Jaguar Land Rover’s rebranding exercise the event will now be named after the company’s iconic Defender model, rather than being prefixed with the Land Rover brand.

For the first time, the majority of tickets will be issued as e-tickets, rather than in printed form. The box office is also being brought in-house, so all sales and queries will be handled in person by Burghley Horse Trials’ office staff.

n See www.burghley-horse.co.uk.

STAMFORD South Holland District Council’s Community Fund has reopened having already approved grants totalling £703,000 to support charities and community groups, which can apply for up to 80% of costs to a maximum of £5,000. n

£703,000 Support

In Brief

OAKHAM

MRI Scanner for Rutland residents

Rutland County Council has granted planning permission for an MRI scanning unit to be located at Oakham Enterprise Park near Ashwell. Community Interest Company

Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Patient Care

Locally working in partnership with Rutland County Council, have been seeking to locate an MRI unit at OEP, which is owned by the Council.

Work to put the necessary infrastructure in place at Oakham Enterprise Park will commence shortly, with the aim of allowing the scanner to become operational by autumn of this year. n

STAMFORD

LEICESTERSHIRE

Local police numbers increased by 340 officers...

RUTLAND

Defender Burghley/Peter Nixon.

New Showroom, New Windows...

NEW WINDOW COMPANY OPENS SECOND SHOWROOM IN STAMFORD

The New Window Company has opened its second showroom in which to show off its range of timber windows and doors, this time in the heart of Stamford.

The new branch on Belton Street in the town will complement the firm’s existing Frieston Heath showroom, and will allow the company to market its high quality and sustainable timber products, including its vertical sliding sash, flush and stormproof window casements, entrance doors, sliding patio and sliding bi-fold doors.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new showroom, held in late April, was attended by chairman Roy Wakeman OBE and general manager Dean Goodwin.

The launch was also celebrated by prize draw competitions featuring lots of local retailers from Sophie

LOCAL NEWS In Brief OH I DO LIKE TO BE BESIDE THE... MEADOWS!

Stamford’s Meadows could have a number of deckchairs for hire if plans are approved to allow a local entrepreneur to pitch up on the beauty spot are approved. Stamford Town Council’s has questioned whether the application would affect the use of space for planned events, and an appeal against the decision has been lodged. n

Allport to The White Company, celebrating the company’s new presence in the town.

The New Window Company is the leading

provider of Timber, Timber Alternative, uPVC and Aluminium windows and doors in the East Midlands, installing across Lincolnshire, Rutland, Nottinghamshire,

Public flock to see bird art

NATHAN MURDOCH, FROM STREET ARTS HIRE, CREATED MURAL ON PARROT ENTHUSIAST’S HOME

Leicestershire and Peterborough since 1995. n New Window Company is based on Belton Street, Stamford PE9 2EF. Call 01400 272538 or see www.new-window.co.uk.

PETERBOROUGH

If the exterior of your home is looking a little dull, you may consider getting the painters in... that’s what 92-year old Gordon Squires did with his home near Peterborough’s Flag Fen. The bird enthusiast brightened up the exterior of his home by commissioning Nathan Murdoch, from Street Arts Hire, and fellow artist Jonnie Barton to create a giant colourful mural on the side of the property. Street Arts Hire is a team of artists reponsible for brightening up urban spaces and is already responsible for a number of community art projects around the city of Peterborough. n

STAMFORD

Image: streetartshire.com

A beautifully refurbished, grade II listed, family home stands in a conservation area in the attractive town of Market Deeping, on the borders of South Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. With easy access to Stamford (8 miles), excellent schools both state and independent, and Peterborough (8 miles) where fast trains to London take around 45 minutes, this is in a superb location for those needing to commute. The fabulous, 6 bedroomed house with its tranquil rear garden, dates to the late 1700s and is a masterful blend of old and new with a contemporary style and palette highlighting the building’s traditional features. With no less than 4 very generous reception rooms inside and further outside seating areas, one covered and one a shed transformed into a bar, this is a truly splendid place to hold a party or entertain on a large scale. The house sits on circa 0.7 acres (stms) and benefits from a large rear garden with a sizeable drive and undercover parking for two cars.

UFFORD, RUTLAND OIRO

£895,500

A proposed and approved, impressive and substantial dwelling will stand on approximately an acre plot, in a tranquil location. This potential property offers a country lifestyle at the edge of a village within easy reach of Stamford and Peterborough. Set well back from the road the attractive, stone-built house will offer flexible living with a bright and spacious open plan kitchen / diner / family room, a snug, office and gym and five double bedrooms on the first floor. The property will also benefit from an attached self-contained annex. Approved Planning Application 21/01622/FUL via Peterborough City Council.

Guide Price £1,400,000

Guide Price £1,100,000

Empingham

This impressive barn conversion, originally built in 1658, extends to approximately 4500 ft² providing abundant and free-flowing accommodation along with ample garaging, parking, and outdoor space. Long Barn, nestled into a quiet spot in Empingham has been beautifully presented creating a modern feel throughout whilst retaining its wealth of character features.

Guide Price £900,000

Lyndon

An immaculately presented, limestone, and thatched cottage, sitting in the heart of the popular village of Lyndon with off-road parking, garaging and a wonderful south-facing garden offering the most beautiful views over the Rutland countryside.

Guide Price

Whissendine

Moat Farm is a five-bedroom period property, originally built in the 16th century it has been extended over the years creating a spacious family home providing off-road parking, a mature garden, and a one-bedroom selfcontained annexe, all nestled into the sought-after village of Whissendine.

Belton in Rutland

A beautifully-presented four-bedroom ironstone village home offering spacious and flexible accommodation, that has been lovingly renovated and upgraded by the current owners to create a wonderful and characterful property

£650,000

Mike Bernard RI | Blue Still Life Charles Hardaker NEAC RBA | The Last BookPeter Wileman FROI RSMA FRSA | A Clearing Shower Brancaster Staithe

Deborah Walker RI RSMA FRSA | Quiet Diligence

SUMMER ENTERTAINMENT in RUTLAND & STAMFORD

Great ideas for a summer spent in Rutland & Stamford from county shows to gardening events,

Image: Scurry driving at The 2022 Rutland Show.

history and quirky places to stay...

THE 2023 RUTLAND COUNTY SHOW...

It’s back, bigger and better than ever before, and with the very best of Rutland represented in a county show that spans over 150 acres. This year will see the 189th Rutland County Show taking place on Sunday 4th June with 12,000 visitors expected to enjoy attractions across 13 fields, with over 560 animals in attendance too...

IT’S BACK! This year will see the 189th Rutland County Show taking place with an anticipated 12,000 visitors expected to enjoy the very best entertainment that the County has to offer with the usual array of main ring entertainment, plus livestock and equestrian entertainment, trade stands and food & drink.

“In the main ring this year you can watch Bolddog FMX, the UK’s number one motorcycle display team performing heartstopping stunts and tricks,” says show organiser Sophie Howsam.

“A fast and furious scurry racing competition will also feature as well as an entertaining duck herding demonstration by some very smart sheep dogs. Those gentle giants, the heavy horses will be back. Entries travel from far and wide and you can meet them along with horses, ponies and livestock including sheep, cattle and goats as they all compete for Best in Show.”

This year the Horticultural Tent will help to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Barnsdale Gardens with Nick Hamilton – son of founder Geoff Hamilton – on hand to provide expertise in a Gardeners’ Question Time-style format.

“There’s live music throughout the day and vintage tractor displays, ferrets, scent dog demonstrations as well as a funfair plus the hilarious Sheep Show is back once again for more ovine fun,” adds Sophie.

Tickets are now on sale for the 2023 Rutland Show. £12/adults, £2/age five-15, no charge for under-fours. Prices quoted for advance ticket purchases see www.rutland showground.com.

“Trade stands offer visitors the chance to browse local crafts –woodwork, jewellery, ceramics – and sample locally produced foods, such as cheeses, meats and jams. Oakham based brewery The Grainstore will provide bars and there will be a wide range of street food and other refreshments available throughout the show.

The Rutland Agricultural Society was established in 1831 and has held an annual show ever since, moving to Burley on the Hill before relocating to new showground in 2014.

One of the most welcome additions in recent years has been the heavy horse classes, but with attractions as diverse as farriery demonstrations, parades of agricultural machinery, and with over 100 trade stands, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

Remember that free shuttle buses from Oakham and Uppingham will enable you to beat the traffic and that well behaved dogs are welcome at The Rutland Show too. n

Find Out More: For the latest main ring programme and more information on The 2023 Rutland County Show, call 01572 757110 or see www.rutlandshowground.com. Rutland Showground, Oakham, Rutland, LE15 7TW.

Don’t miss the 189th Rutland Show

The Rutland Show: A History of The Event...

THE RUTLAND AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY’S origins date back to 1788 and the formation of the Leicestershire and Rutland Agricultural Society. The first supporter of this was the Earl of Winchelsea, owner of Burley on the Hill Estate.

The first Rutland County Show was held on Monday December 5th 1831 at an indoor riding stable in Catmos Street, Oakham (now Rutland County Museum), attended by 500 people.

The show moved to a 17 acre site in Barleythorpe and then in 1976 to Burley on the Hill’s Court d’Honneur. In 2003, the show moved into the main Parkland area at Burley on the Hill.

The move to the new Rutland Showground took place in 2014. The first show saw a huge increase in numbers through the gates as the sun shone and once again many visitors could walk to the new showground from town. Despite a few site teething problems, the show has gone from strength to strength in its permanent home. n

The Show In Numbers: Facts & Figures...

n 12,000+: The number of visitors expected.

n 100+: Over a hundred trade stands on site.

n 2,500: The number of hours it takes the team and its 100 volunteers to host the show.

n 40,000: The number of steps walked by the Show Manager on the day of the event!

n 560: Animals in attendance; 400 sheep competing, 70 cattle and 90 heavy horses.

n The show spans 150 acres, across 13 fields. It offers 30 different types of entertainment!

THE BURGHLEY HOUSE GAME & COUNTRY FAIR

Returning with top arena events and entertainment at Burghley House, it’s the Living Heritage Game & Country Fair 2023...

IT’S BACK! The Living Heritage Game & Country Fair returns to Burghley House on Bank Holiday Sunday and Monday, with country sports and pursuits with a couple of main arenas offering all day entertainment.

Expect clay shooting, airguns, archery & paintball plus fishing, falconry and the World of Dogs competitions. Lurcher and whippet racing, gundog scurries and dog training will also feature. And elsewhere, there’s a craft fair, food halls plus live jazz and folk music as well as entertainment for families with children.

n From 10am, £16/adults, £15/senior, £6/junior, Burghley House, PE9 3JY see www.livingheritagecountryshows.com.

NATIONAL GARDENS SCHEME: Rutland & Stamford NGS Events in 2023...

SUNDAY 4th JUNE

MANTON GRANGE

MANTON, OAKHAM

2½ acre garden with interesting trees, shrubs and herbaceous borders. Kitchen garden. Rose garden. Water features; lime tree walk and pergola walk with many clematis.

n Manton Grange, Lyndon Road, Manton, LE15 8SR .

SATURDAY 10th JUNE

ABBOTS BARN

SOUTHORPE, STAMFORD

Two acre garden surrounding a converted Georgian barn. Wildflower meadow, allotmentsized vegetable plot, orchard, Mediterranean gravel garden and large glasshouse on site.

n Abbots Barn, Southorpe Stamford, PE9 3BX.

SATURDAY 24th JUNE

HOME FARM

RYHALL, STAMFORD

A colourful and fragrant range of roses, herbaceous borders and an avenue of lavender and cherry trees established 12 years ago, alongside a woodland walk on the nine acre site.

n Home Farm, Little Casterton Road, Ryhall, PE9 4HA .

WEDNESDAY 28th JUNE

THE OLD VICARAGE

BURLEY, OAKHAM

Relaxed country garden, planted for year-round interest and colour. Lawns and borders, a lime walk, rose gardens and a sunken rill garden with an avenue of standard wisteria.

n The Old Vicarage, Burley Oakham, LE15 7SU.

GLOBAL

BIRDFAIR:

Get in a flap this July

RAISING MONEY for conservation charities, Global Birdfair is a three-day celebration of birds and wildlife, based on the previous Birdfair event which was established in 1989, but now held at the Rutland Showground and organised by Tim Appleton.

Last year saw the inaugural event raise over €100,000 for conservation project Revive La Janda, protecting an area in Andalucia, Spain which acts as a vital link for migratory birds to the UK from Africa. The event was attended by 11,600 with 245 exhibitors and support from names like Swarovski, Anglian Water, RSPB, Zeiss, Sony, Leica and BBC Wildlife Magazine.

This year’s event will see four stages – Osprey, Avocet, Curlew and Plover – for lectures on international conservation, nature tourism, and photography plus many more subjects, continuing the reputation that Birdfair had as ‘the birdwatcher’s Glastonbury!’

n Tickets £38/adult, three days. See www.globalbirdfair.org.

BURGHLEY HORSE TRIALS: International talent...

THIS SUMMER the world’s greatest eventing talent will arrive at Burghley House determined to ensure that this year’s event is the biggest and best yet.

Defending her role is last year’s winner Piggy March (née French), and aptly the title of the event has changed too...

Oakham’s Party in the Park

STAMFORD’S EXCITING PLAY PARK FOR KIDS...

Youngsters are in for a treat this season with two new playparks opening in the county. Burghley House’s playpark is now open with its host Cecil the Mole – named after William Cecil, the spymaster of Queen Elizabeth I keen to introduce children and grandchildren to a range of spy-themed activities involving secret codes and secret missions. Belvoir Castle’s new adventure playground has been designed by Lady Alice Manners with inclusivity in mind featuring a giant castle and pirate ship. n See burghley.co.uk and belvoircastle.com.

it’ll not be known as the Defender Burghley Horse Trials as key sponsor Land Rover seeks to ally its most rugged model

with the CCI5* event, one of only seven such horse trials in the world.

Competitors will be tackling coursedesigner Derek di Grazia’s thrilling cross country track, which takes up most of the 520 acres dedicated to the event. Over 340 horses are expected to compete at the event, established in 1961 with over 160,000 visitors expected to attend.

n See www.burghley-horse.co.uk.

On 9th July from noon, Cutts Close in Oakham will play host to a range of local sellers, food stalls and The Grainstore Bar in a family-friendly event from running all afternoon and organised by Oakham Town Council. See www.discover-rutland.co.uk for further information or call 01572 72362.

THURSDAY 31st AUGUST – SUNDAY 3rd SEPTEMBER

Burghley House.

THE BATTLE PROMS at BURGHLEY

Live music in a stunning setting with a firework finale...

AT ITS HEART, The Battle Proms at Burghley House and three other venues across England provides an evening of wonderful classical music performed by a live orchestra in the open air.

But there’s more to enjoy than just a sublime programme of music, with the parkland opening at 4.30pm ready for visitors to lay down their picnic blankets. From 6.15pm there’s a Napoleonic Cavalry troop displaying dazzling horse and rider skills before the Red Devils parachute display team drop in

The event’s musical programme begins from 7pm with the 1940s-style Battle Proms Belles before the New English Concert Orchestra begin the musical programme including a Spitfire air display and evening gun salute followed by spectacular fireworks.

Find Out More: £55/adult advance, Saturday 8th July, call 01432 355 416 or see www.battleproms.com, held at Burghley House, www.burghley.co.uk.

THURSDAY 22nd - WEDNESDAY 28th JUNE

NEVILL HOLT OPERA LA CENERENTOLA BY ROSSINI...

Neville Holt, the country estate of David Ross opens its RIBA Award-winning theatre in the Leicestershire countryside to allow visitors to enjoy superb performances of opera including this year’s La Cenerentola by Rossini, a comic retelling of the Cinderella story. Sung in Italian with English surtitles. Performances run from 22nd June to 28th June from 3pm/5pm, with tickets from £130. Dining is also available from £25/head, or take along a picnic. n For more information see www.nevillholtopera.co.uk.

SUNDAY 18th JUNE

UPPINGHAM FEAST

Feast Day is an Uppingham tradition which has modified over the decades, and is a free family fun day, on Sunday 18th June 2023. You’ll enjoy live music in Uppingham’s Market Place, excellent food, entertainment and shopping.

“All music tastes are catered for; jazz to pop, soul to rock, funk to folk, there’s something for everyone,” say organisers. “The event is free to attend all day and the High Street is crowded with food stalls to feast from. Children’s entertainments are many and varied and there is a craft and gift fair in the Town Hall for all you shoppers. It’s a super Sunday full of fun for everyone.

n See www.loveuppingham.org.uk.

GIN CRUISES in RUTLAND

Rutland Water is an undoubted joy throughout the summer, but for a truly enjoyable vantage point, take a trip on the Rutland Belle for a three and a half-hour twilight cruise complete with a gin cocktail and a quiz whilst on board. The gin cruises take place on Saturday 10th June, Friday 23rd June, Saturday 8th July and Saturday 22nd July, all departing Whitwell Harbour from 5.30pm, £50/ticket.

n For more information see www.rutlandwatercruises.com

SATURDAY 15th - SUNDAY 16th JULY

BELVOIR FLOWER & GARDEN SHOW

GARDEN INSPIRATION and a great day out... what could be better than spending a sunny weekend in the grounds of Belvoir Castle, enjoying 28 show borders and more than 50 trade exhibitors. The show will also feature talks by TV’s David Domoney, plus Floral demonstrations by Jonathan Moseley, a talks panel including Professor David Stevens, John Stirland, Rosy Hardy, Karen Gimson and Mark Smith.

As well as the show itself, there’s live entertainment, cookery demonstrations, a dog show and the opportunity to pick up inspiration and the meants to bring your creative vision to live with all of the flowers and shrubs you need from leading growers including David Austin Roses, Hardy’s and more.

n From 9.45am to 4.30pm, non-RHS members £12.50/advance, Belvoir Castle, NG32 1PE, see belvoircastleflowerandgardenshow.co.uk.

ACTIVE RUTLAND’S WALKING & CYCLING FESTIVAL 2023...

Active Rutland’s two-week festival once again calls upon locals to embrace the Rutland countryside with programme of walks, cycle routes and activities. Week One sees walkers tackle the Rutland Round, a 65-mile circular route around the county border. Week Two is made up of different walking and cycling activities such as a family bike ride, canal walk and more, see www.activerutland.org.uk. n

Image: www.anglianwaterparks.co.uk.

SUMMER in RUTLAND & STAMFORD

QUIRKY ACCOMMODATION NOT TOO FAR FROM HOME!

LUXURY SHEPHERDS’ HUT: Quiet and quirky...!

TWO FABULOUS Cider

Huts close to Stamford nestling among 200 apple trees in a wildflower meadow. Beautifully crafted with Premium quality towels and linens, with a cast-iron radiator and log burner, en suite bathroom and kitchenette with kettle and fridge. Ready-made itineraries available, local walks and use of a tandem bicycle too!

LANTERNS AND LARKS:

LANTERN & LARKS has established a ‘glam camping’ campsite within the 500 hectares of Exton Park. This beautiful 18th-Century park, which is Grade II listed, contains a sheltered five-acre walled garden which gradually slopes down to an ornamental lake at the southern end, where ospreys have been known to catch their dinner!

Discover

is

county’s tourist information service and has a number of recommended hotels, bed & breakfast venues, self-catering and glamping options for those seeking

Glamping in Exton...

Each glamping tent has a fully-equipped kitchen, private bathroom with gas-powered shower and proper toilet, log-burning stove, with three bedrooms sleeping up to six people. Firepits are included with each booking, and group bookings are available too if family or friends want to book their own tents as part of a larger family reunion. n

LUXURY WOODLAND RETREATS, set in 20 acres of Rutland countryside and in a top secret location! Rocket Lodge, pictured above, was featured on George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces and is made up of three reclaimed grain silos. The quirky accommodation can sleep six and has a private kitchen, bathroom, central heating, wood-fired hot tub and pizza oven, plus a private deck and wetland/pond with island!

n See www.alittlebitofrough.co.uk.

A LITTLE BIT OF ROUGH... A LOT TO LOVE IN RUTLAND!

n Booking via www.ciderhuts.co.uk or call 07432 643872.

Find Out More: Lantern & Larks provides glamping on the Exton estate. Prices from £458 for a 3 night stay (low season); prices from £715 for a 3 night stay (high season). For availability see lanternandlarks.co.uk.

What’s On...

STAMFORD

FRIDAY 2nd JUNESATURDAY 3rd JUNE

JASPER CARROTT,

Appearing live at Stamford’s Corn Exchange to prove that this icon of British comedy of five decades is still at the top of his game... it’s the one and only Jasper Carrott. Among his many accolades are BBC TV Personality of the Year, Midlander of the Year Award, his own ‘Star’ on Birmingham’s Walk of Stars and the British Comedy Awards Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008. In recognition of his outstanding work for charity, Jasper was awarded an OBE in Her Majesty’s New Year’s Honours List in 2003.

n Tickets £30, from 7.30pm, Stamford Corn Exchange, PE9 1PX, call 01780 766455 or see www.stamfordcornexchange.co.uk.

Rutland Osprey Cruises

ALL ABOARD THE RUTLAND BELLE FOR AN ENJOYABLE EVENING WATCHING WILDLIFE OVER THE RESERVOIR

OAKHAM

3rd, 14th, 17th, 21st, 24th WEDNESDAY/SATURDAY OSPREY CRUISES

Evening osprey cruises aboard The Rutland Belle, sailing from Whitwell from 6pm-7.30pm providing spectacular views of Rutland’s ospreys.

Rutland Water Cruises is a family-run business operating boat trips since 1986, cruising around the reservoir during daylight hours from April to October each year. The vessel has a fully Licensed Bar, including a fantastic selection of gins from Multum Gin Parvo.

n See www.lrwt.org.uk.

OAKHAM

SUNDAY 18th JUNE

FATHER’S DAY BRUNCH AT BARNSDALE GARDENS

Dad enjoys free entry for the day, when accompanied by a child. He’ll enjoy a hearty full English breakfast, along with fresh pastries, chilled fruit juice and unlimited tea and coffee, then the gardens have organised a family nature trail throughout Barnsdale’s eight acres and 38 individual gardens.

n Brunch from 10.30am, natura trail from 9am-5pm, call 01572 813 200 for details or see www.barnsdalegardens.co.uk. Near Exton, LE15 8AH.

OAKHAM

SUNDAY 18th JUNE

FATHER’S DAY AT GRAINSTORE BREWERY

An invitation to all fathers to enjoy a day out at a brewery, including lunch from midday, the opportunity to pour your own pint and of course, a tour of the brewery itself. n Booking required via Grainstore Brewery, Oakham, call 01572 770065 or see www.grainstorebrewery.com.

OAKHAM

SATURDAY 17th JUNE

OAKHAM PRIDE

Series of live music and dance performances beginning with a Pride march and opening speech then celebrations throughout the day concluding at 4.45pm. n oakham-pride.webnode.co.uk.

Jasper Carrott with his daughter Lucy Davis.

LEICESTER

TUESDAY 13th JUNE

- SUNDAY 18th JUNE

SIX: THE MUSICAL

The international smash hit musical Six makes its royal return to Leicester following its previous sell-out success!

A re-telling of the story of Henry VIII’s wives, set in a contemporary style, this musical’s cast take to the mic to tell their tales, remixing five hundred years of historical

heartbreak into an 80-minute celebration of 21st century girl power.

Winner of the 2022 Tony Award for ‘Best Original Score’ and ‘Best Costume Design,’ plus the 2022 Whatsonstage Award for ‘Best West End Show.’

n Daytime and evening performances, call for prices, Curve Theatre, Leicester LE1 1SB, call 0116 242 3560 or see www.curveonline.co.uk.

Shakespeare in Stamford

ENJOY PHENOMENAL AL FRESCO PERFORMANCES OF SHAKESPEARE’S WORK AT TOLETHORPE HALL

RUTLAND

SUNDAY 4th JUNE

THE 189th RUTLAND COUNTY SHOW

A quick reminder that The Rutland Show will once again be held on the Rutland Showground, with its usual mix of main ring attractions, agricultural classes, equestrian shows, trade stands and local food. The show is expected to be attended by 12,000 people and it spans over 150 acres, with over a hundred trade stalls and 560 animals in attendance. 2023’s event will be the 189th show, with main ring show due to be confirmed as Pride goes to press.

n Tickets £14.50/adults, £2/children on the gate, discount for pre-booking online, call 01572 757110 or see www.rutlandshowground.com.

STAMFORD

JUNE, JULY & AUGUST

MEASURE FOR MEASURE, AS YOU LIKE IT & THE LADY IN THE VAN

Stamford Shakespeare Company formed under the formidable Jean Harley in 1968 and moved to their current home of Tolethorpe Hall, for their first performances there in June 1977. Each year the theatre performs a couple of Shakespeare’s plays but also a ‘wildcard’ and an additional performance by its junior players, Tolethorpe Youth Drama (TYD).

Send your press releases and events to editor@pridemagazines.co.uk

STAMFORD

FRIDAY 23rd JUNESATURDAY 24th JUNE

ROLLS ROYCE

ENTHUSIASTS CLUB

ANNUAL RALLY AT BURGHLEY

Annual Rally & Concours d’Elegance widely considered as the largest gathering of Rolls-Royce and Bentley motor cars in the world takes place each summer. With trade and other stands, an auction as well as class judging and a parade of prize winning cars. n Burghley House, PE9 3JY. www.burghley.co.uk.

STAMFORD

SATURDAY 24th JUNE

SUNDAY 25th JUNE

RUTLAND 10k & TOWER SWIM

Feeling active? Head to Rutland Water this month for a 10k race, the Dambuster Triathlon or the 2km Tower Swim. n

This year, the theatre will put on productions of Measure for Measure, set in the Hapsburg empire of early-1900s Vienna, plus As You Like It with a 1960s backdrop, and Alan Bennett’s poignant story The Lady in the Van.

The theatre creates its own backdrops, costumes, scripts and choreographs its own fight scenes or stunts entirely in-house. Production values are super and both cast and crew are committed to creating really good entertainment.

n For dates of each production, and ticket prices, call 01780 754381, or see tolethorpe.co.uk.

Photo by Manuel Harlan.

Rutland & Stamford Schools

Here, we profile some of the best independent schools across Rutland & Stamford, offering the very best education the region has to offer...

Stamford Welland Academy

For children of all abilities and backgrounds...

Laxton Junior School

Stamford Welland Academy joined the Meridian family of schools in 2014.

We are A school for all children in Stamford and the surrounding areas which is at the heart of the community.

A school which educates the ‘whole’ child. A school which provides a breadth of opportunities for all.

A school which celebrates the achievement of all.

We are an ever-expanding secondary school with admissions increasing in every year group each year. The confidence that the community has in our excellent pastoral care and quality of teaching means that we are growing at a rapid rate within the Stamford community.

These are exciting times for Stamford Welland and every

week we welcome more new students to the academy – we have seen pupil numbers grow by 35% in the last 4 years.

The improvements to the learning environment over the last couple of years and the improvements yet to come; coupled with our rich and varied curriculum and exceptional pastoral care, all ensure that we have a thriving, popular academy.

OFSTED visited us in September 2021 and they, too, agreed that SWA is a fantastic place to learn.

Please join us at our upcoming Open Evening on Tuesday 20th June from 5pm.

n Please call 01780 761000 to speak to a member of the admissions team or see www.stamfordwellandacademy.org.

Teaching our youngest children is really special. It requires a particular passion and skill…and a desire to enter the amazing world of their imagination. Our small classes and oneto-one approach enable us to get to know each child really well from the outset, building both trust and confidence. We respond to their brilliant ideas and interests, working with them through play to wonder where, what, why and how. We call this the Power of Play because is it through play and without any inhibitions, limitations or expectations, that four-year-old children truly fall in love with learning. This is, without doubt, the strongest possible foundation for their future development.

Supporting this vision for learning is our brand new, state-ofthe-art Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) space which opened in September. Working closely with specialist architects, the existing classrooms have been reimagined to become a

dynamic, open plan indoor and outdoor learning space that maximises opportunities for learning through play in all weathers. Sustainability has been central to the development, with the space making use of natural eco-friendly materials, connecting with nature and the environment.

Join us and experience a taste of LJS at our Reception Family Day on Saturday 20th May. We will have lots of fun activities, all designed with pre-schoolers in mind, and some summer refreshments for the grownups. Everyone is welcome - whether you are actively looking for a school place, are just starting to explore your options or simply want to learn more about EYFS and how you can best support your child’s learning.

n Laxton Junior School (part of Oundle School).

W: www.laxtonjunior.org.uk

E: admissions@laxtonjunior.org.uk

T: 01832 277275

Instagram: laxtonjuniorschool

“Innovative approach to play & child-led learning”

The Peterborough School

Oakham School

Wellbeing at Oakham School...

The Peterborough School, or ‘TPS’ as it’s affectionately called, has evolved over the past 128 years and is familiar to many local families under its various name changes since it was first established as a High School for girls in 1895. The school moved to its current site in 1936, a beautiful Grade II Listed house called ‘Westwood House’, until its name changed back to ‘Peterborough High School’ in 1991. When the first Headmaster, Mr Adrian Meadows joined the School in 2007, he made the decision in 2010 to allow the admission of Boys into Years 7 and 12 and - as the only coeducational independent school in the city – was renamed, ‘The Peterborough School’. Since then, under his leadership, the School has gone from strength to strength, with a proud vision of ‘unlocking the potential of each and every child’.

As a ‘Through School’, TPS provides pupils from Nursery

to Sixth Form with a continuous journey of progression and instills ambition, with experienced teachers that help each child to flourish and where every pupil has the freedom to thrive. The School has high standards and expectations and offers talented pupils scholarships in academia, music, sport and the Arts at key entry points of Year 7 and Sixth Form. TPS offers small class sizes, with personalised learning and wrap-around pastoral care. The Gifted and Talented programme runs alongside Independent Learning where children often exceed their initial expectations and go on to achieve top grades at GCSE and A-Level, with 2022 results having an 100% Pass Rate. With so much on offer, the opportunities for every child are boundless.

n www.thepeterboroughschool.co.uk

Email: admissions@tpsch.co.uk

Phone: 01733 343357

Wellbeing: The Most Important Thing We Can Teach our Pupils

As wellbeing remains a top priority for schools across the globe, Oakham School’s Deputy Head Pastoral, Sarah Gomm, explores the importance of pastoral learning. Offering an outstanding education for 10 to 18 year olds in the heart of Rutland, the School is introducing a new connected curriculum, meaning pastoral learning will be taught to all pupils during lesson time by specialist staff.

“Pastoral care is far more important than anything else we teach children in School,” says Sarah.

“I’m a big believer in all of the wonderful things we offer at Oakham School, but whilst exam results and academia are important, you could probably go through school without

understanding covalent bonding, but you can’t go through life without knowing how to look after your wellbeing.”

“If pupils are feeling in a good place and their mental and physical wellbeing are robust, we know that they’re ready to learn. There’s a significant link between academic resilience and personal resilience, so if you’re in a state of mind where you’re happy and healthy, your ability to learn and achieve will be significantly higher.”

“The additional class time will allow us to really focus on wellbeing and make time for these hugely important life lessons. It supports our existing tutorial programme and the work our excellent Housemasters and Housemistresses do.”

n To book a place at an Open Event or arrange an individual visit, please contact the Admissions team: 01572 758758 or visit oakham.rutland.sch.uk.

Peterborough’s Family School since 1895...

CLAYTON

Life in the News

This month we’ve the privilege of joining Marilyn Clayton to reflect on the life and career of her late husband Michael, whose new memoirs detail a life in journalism and broadcasting, from the Editor’s desk of Horse & Hound to some of the 20th century’s most brutal conflicts...

IN ECCLESIASTES, it is advised that there is ‘a time to keep silence and a time to speak,’ and ultimately ‘a time for war, and a time for peace.’ If anyone knew that it’s Michael Clayton, who died just before Christmas after a 70-year career in journalism and broadcasting, including his years as a war correspondent reporting on conflicts in Cambodia and Vietnam.

The very same bible passage was read at Michael’s private funeral as friends from across the media as well as organisations such as British Society of Magazine Editors, British Horse Society, Countryside Alliance and Cottesmore Hunt all expressed their affection and respect for a man whose capacity for kindness and compassion was almost as abounding as his desire to write and broadcast.

True to form, Michael’s final weeks were spent completing yet another book, having already published a number of volumes about the countryside, horses and hunting.

This volume, My Life in the News, is dedicated to his life in the media and takes the reader from a boyhood in wartime Bournemouth to the small offices of his weekly local paper the New Milton Advertiser & Lymington Times, then on to Fleet Street, then the BBC and eventually to the offices of Horse & Hound, via war-torn Vietnam, Cambodia and the studios of Radio Four’s flagship Today Programme within BBC’s Broadcasting House.

Right now though, we’re a little closer to home, joining Michael’s wife of 35-years Marilyn, who helped him write the book whilst caring for him at the end of his life. We’re reflecting on his life in the couple’s Rutland sitting room and soon, Marilyn

Words: Rob Davis.

shows me the Olivetti Lettera 22 typewriter, a classic portable model created in 1950 which went on to win numerous awards. It was given to Michael by his parents as a 21st birthday present in 1956, just as Michael was completing his national service in the RAF and returning to journalism, this time on London’s Fleet Street.

A decent typewriter at the time was a great asset for writing but this one later saved Michael’s life too when, as a war reporter, he came under fire. Still the leather case of the machine bears the scars from being used as a shield, protecting him from damage from ricocheting debris.

Michael recalls that as a child in the 1940s, the idea of war was almost romantic. He and his friends would play war games, using homemade wooden rifles and ‘ak-ak-ak’ sounds to emulate the sounds of weapons.

He recalls the innocent excitement of his childhood, watching aircraft from the RAF and the Luftwaffe engaging one another above the skies of Bournemouth.

In the nearby village of Kinson, he and his friends collected fragments of a crashed Messerschmitt, taking pieces of it home as a souvenir.

During air raids, Michael and other local children would join in night-time picnics in the air raid shelter and they would sing songs about whistling while they worked and Hitler being a twerp. His innocence broke, though, when the tall and unsuspecting boy was

inadvertently allowed into the local cinema expecting to see a comedy short by Lauren & Hardy or Charlie Chaplin but instead viewed a special report filmed the previous week on the liberation of the Bergan-Belsan camp.

The horrific pictures and bleak commentary made Michael realise that he had been sheltered from such atrocities and that the notion of the jolly ‘people’s war’ was an optimistic abstraction from the brutal reality of the European conflict.

It was an experience that, whilst horrific and especially challenging for an innocent boy, nonetheless instilled in him an abhorrence for racism and prejudice, with a respect for human rights which would underwrite his ability to compassionately report for the BBC on the atrocities of the troubles in Northern Ireland, the Vietnam and Cambodian war, civil war in Pakistan and conflict in countries such as Egypt, Libya, Syria and Uganda.

Before all that though, Michael had to face his greatest adversary: a mother who was somewhat unhappy about her fresh-out-of-education son spending the first two weeks of his post-school life doing little but soaking up the sunshine on Bournemouth beach.

Describing her as ‘no taller than his shoulder, but still packing a punch,’ and with a penchant for English at school, Michael had no choice but to get on his bicycle and lobby his local newspapers for employment.

He duly found it at the Times & Advertiser in 1951, where he remained until entering National Service and then joining the London Evening News and later the London Evening Standard. >>

Main: Michael Clayton with his wife of 35 year Marilyn, taken in the couple’s beloved Rutland.

>> Michael’s book described the giddy thrill of working for the Curry family and the newspaper’s old-school bronchial pipesmoking Editor/proprietor.

This was an era of Pitman shorthand, lead type, oily printing ink and thunderous presses, but it also saw the breaking of a major story on his patch – the persecution of Lord Montagu – which brought Michael face-to-face with national reporters and with how both the courts and the media meted out justice. Again, the experience influenced his coverage of The Profumo Affair, The Great Train Robbery and the Aberfan Disaster as well as his future career for his first foray into broadcasting as News Editor of Southern TV and his subsequent role as a Staff News Correspondent for the BBC from 1965.

It was an exciting time to work for the BBC, especially in the respect of radio, with the replacement of The Light Service and The Home Service in 1967 with Radio One, Two, Three and Four. In the case of the latter, both the World at One and the Today programmes became more heavyweight in their reporting – and the setting – of the day’s news agenda under editors like Andrew Boyle, rubbing the likes of Prime Minister Harold Wilson up entirely the wrong way by ending the traditional deferential style of BBC reporting in favour of firmer interviews holding the government to account.

Soon Michael was covering the troubles in Northern Ireland, then war in Cambodia –where the typewriter obtained its battle scars – and ultimately the fall of Saigon. He later covered the Indo-Pakistan confrontation of 1971 and returned home via Idi Amin’s dictatorship in Uganda.

Michael’s last foreign assignment was in Gaddafi’s Libya where a brush with some pretty brutal security service personnel granted the reporter a final blaze of glory before he returned to London to take up a

position as the presenter of BBC Radio Four’s Today Programme and Any Questions.

In 1973, Michael would assume the editorship of Horse & Hound, where he remained until 1996, raising its circulation to 96,000 and also overseeing Country Life and the Field for IPC Magazines Ltd for which he was a board member.

One of his memories is the collection, every Thursday, of two copies of Horse & Hound for Buckingham Palace. Michael was no stranger to making conversation with the royal family in his professional role at various racing and polo fixtures.

Moving to Rutland in 1988, he also became a keen subscriber to the Cottesmore Hunt and by the time he came to assume semi-retirement from IPC in 1997, Michael was a founder member of the Press Complaints Commission, advocating ethical journalism, as well as the Chairman of the British Society

of Magazine Editors, British Horse Society and regional chairman of the Countryside Alliance.

Remarking that Michael enjoyed receiving and reading his monthly copy of Pride each month causes us to feel very humble indeed, and his final book is definitely the magnum opus of a man whose achievements and ethics have informed a superb biography with some really poignant observations.

Michaels children Marcus and Maxine from his first marriage and his step-daughter Georgina remain in awe of their father’s legacy not just in publishing and broadcasting but as an incredibly popular figure whose imposing stature and confidence was counterbalanced by his ability to put everyone at ease with a natural warmth ensuring anyone would open up to him, whether he had a pint – or a notepad – in his hand. n

MICHAEL

-

“Michael was comfortable even among Royalty, meeting them at equestrian fixtures. Every Thursday two copies of Horse & Hound would be collected, bound for Buckingham Palace...”

Poached fillet of halibut with smoked bone marrow, watermelon radish and clam chowder.

Roast Merryfield farm duck with smoked beetroot, yuzu and salty fingers.

Dining Out in Rutland at HAMBLETON HALL

A return visit to Hambleton Hall this month celebrates a wonderful setting, a warm welcome and of course, the exceptional dining for which the place has been renowned since 1980...

Words: Rob Davis.

Some things in life just fill you with an overwhelming sense of happiness. A warm summer day, for instance. A really nicelooking garden or time spent with family or friends enjoying good food and drink.

Since 1980, Hambleton Hall has offered all of the above and more. It has also managed to remain consistently and unequivocally at the top of its game ever since it first opened its doors, obtaining its Michelin star in 1982 and retaining it ever since under its first head chef Nick Gill (brother of food writer A A Gill) and then Aaron Patterson who remains at the helm today.

Hambleton Hall has also incubated some of the best talent in the industry today from its own Julian Carter, co-founder of Hambleton Bakery, to Ben Jones & Sean Hope (co-founders of The Olive Branch at Clipsham), to chef Neil Hitchen of Hitchen’s Barn and former pastry chef Fiona Cairns who went on to make Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding cake. We could continue, but suffice to say a position within the kitchens of Hambleton Hall is a coveted opportunity to learn from the best.

Tim & Stefa acquired the former hunting lodge, dating back to 1881 and once owned by Eva Astley Paston Cooper who would entertain the likes of Noël Coward, Malcolm Sargent and Charles Scott Moncrieff.

Hambleton Hall’s country house hotel feel and its 17 bedrooms were created by Stefa Hart, a creator of fine country house interiors in collaboration with former colleague Nina Campbell. And of course, general manager Chris Hurst, restaurant director Graeme Matheson and sommelier Dominique Baduel have between them a combined 70 years of experience at Hambleton Hall.

The hotel remains synonymous with very good dining, but it would be remiss to overlook the time and attention to detail that all of the above have invested in creating the overall Hambleton Hall experience of warm and professional service in a great setting.

To its credit Hambleton Hall never ever feels intimidating despite the grandeur of the setting or the knowledge of its customers that they’re walking through the door of one of Britain’s best restaurants. >>

MEET THE CHEF

Aaron leads a brigade of 16 chefs to create meticulous dishes which reflect Hambleton Hall’s four AA rosettes, and its Michelin Star. He has served as the hotel’s Head Chef since 1992. n

AARON PATTERSON DIRECTOR & HEAD CHEF

Hambleton garden salad with baby vegetables and truffle dressing.

on the MENU

Starters

Poached king prawns, ponzu, avocado, seaweed.

Paté of chicken liver, crab apple purée, Calvados.

Terrine of heritage carrot, spiced carrot ice cream.

Slow cooked octopus, chorizo with lemon & ginger sauce, squid ink pasta.

Main Courses

Roast quail, mushroom risotto, salsify, sauternes sauce.

Loin of Launde Farm lamb, sweetbread, aubergine with chickpea & black garlic.

Rib eye of Red Hill farm pork and braised kohlrabi with apple & crackling.

Poached fillet of turbot with clams, cucumber, oyster leaf sauce.

Gourmet Corner

Sturia Oscietra caviar, potato ice cream, buckwheat (starter £5.00 supplement).

Fillet of beef, oxtail, eryngii mushrooms, yam bean & red wine sauce (main course, £8.00 supplement).

Desserts

Hambleton’s tiramisu.

Calvados chiboust, blackberries, apple sorbet

A selection of farmhouse cheeses with Hambleton Bakery bread, grapes & celery.

NB: This is a sample menu, and featured dishes are subject to availability and change.

>> During lunchtime service there are two options including a Lunch for Less menu with two options per course for £54/two courses plus an optional third course and/or coffee and chocolates. A three course à la carte lunchtime menu provides four choices per course at £115/three courses.

A dedicated Sunday lunch menu provides three courses for £84, and during both lunchtime and evening service a Gourmet Corner addition to the menu provides the option of enjoying a couple of rather special dishes whose components are particularly indulgent.

Dinner at Hambleton Hall is £115/three courses and changes on a daily basis with Aaron and the team keen to design dishes mindful of whatever ingredients are proving particularly good at the time.

Aaron’s one-acre kitchen garden adjacent to the hotel provides the chef with a range of produce and enables him to teach his 16-strong brigade that growing and using fresh ingredients is integral to the creation of their dishes.

The garden is also integral to Hambleton Hall’s provision of a dedicated plant-based menu with several options available to diners, ensuring they don’t feel like an afterthought.

Hambleton Hall’s gardens are also open on Wednesday 21st June as part of a Garden Day & Lunch event. Following morning coffee, guests will enjoy a tour of Market Overton’s Old Hall, Cottesmore’s Chapel Farm and then a tour of Hambleton Hall’s own kitchen garden, prior to a three course lunch and a tour of the garden itself afterwards.

“Hopefully, the best compliment and the most honest appraisal I can give of Hambleton Hall is that whenever I walk through the door I feel welcome, and profoundly happy...”

Other ingredients are carefully sourced, locally where possible, and of course Hambleton Bakery provides the hotel with its bread.

The latter is a success story in its own right, established in 2008 with six shops and two more due to open in Rothley and St Ives, plus a new 24-hour bakehouse which opened in 2022 to accommodate demand for its flagship Hambleton Sourdough loaf.

It’s a good idea to keep an eye on Hambleton Hall’s website and to sign up to the hotel’s newsletter to ensure you’re kept up to date with events such as wine tasting evenings and foraging events plus partnerships with companies like luxury small ship cruise specialists Silversea, motor racing company Palmersport and Nevill Holt Opera.

Whilst the hospitality profession has doubtless faced myriad challenges in recent years Hambleton Hall has remained rock solid.

It’s little surprise given the quality, warmth and consistency that the company offers its diners and guests, and its keenness to remain one of the most welcoming and enjoyable experiences not just in the area but nationally.

It’s easy to gush about Hambleton Hall and make reference to Michelin-starred cuisine and the very beautiful environment.

But hopefully the best compliment and certainly the most honest appraisal I can give is that whenever I walk through the door, I feel welcome and I feel happy.

Hambleton Hall’s team works hard to ensure it’s a place that makes everybody smile, every single time. n

DINING OUT AT... Hambleton Hall

The Pitch: Hambleton Hall is your luxurious home from home, renowned for impeccable service with elegantly-designed rooms and Michelin-starred cuisine.

Lunchtime Service: Monday to Sunday 12noon – 1.30pm.

Evening Service: Monday to Sunday 6.30pm – 9pm.

Hambleton Hall, Ketton Road, Oakham, Rutland LE15 8TH. Call 01572 756991 or see www.hambletonhall.com.

Rhubarb and white chocolate cheesecake with tastes of Yorkshire rhubarb.

The Hayloft at Hunters

SUNSHINE, plus good coffee, good cake and good company. Those we feel are the essential ingredients for a really enjoyable long lunch. And where better to consolidate them than The Hayloft at Hunters?

Hunters is renowned for being the home of great interior design in Stamford, and with locals keen to spend time browsing in the showroom, the opportunity arose to create a coffee shop in 2020. In conjunction with an expansion and relocation of the studio into an adjacent barn, one of the area’s best coffee shops and lunchtime dining venues was established.

A staple of any good coffee shop is really good coffee and tea. The team, headed up

Hambleton Bakery provides scones and teacakes as well as the bread served with The Hayloft’s freshly made soup, its salads of the day and sourdough for its sandwiches. A daily-changing choice of cakes and a tiered traditional afternoon tea (available by pre-booking) are a joy, whether you’re indoors or – weather permitting – enjoying the glorious al fresco terrace overlooking some fabulous open farmland. n

by manager Suzanne Digby and owners Candida Smith and Georgina Teesdale have chosen Carrera Coffee Roasters in Market Harborough to supply a bespoke blend of Terreno coffee and offer leaf teas from local blender InfiniTeas.

As the worthy winners of Pride’s Coffee Shop of the Year title in 2022, our readers say that The Hayloft at Hunters is renowned for its pretty setting and dedicated menu of light lunches...

A stylish, inviting place to enjoy coffee, cake or lunch, it’s

The Hayloft at Hunters is open from Monday to Saturday from 9am-4pm at The Stables, Copthill Farm, Deeping Road, Uffington PE9 4TD. Call 01780 753351 or see www.huntersinteriors.co.uk.

In the KITCHEN

Enjoy a delicious homemade Strawberry Shortcake with the sweetest, juiciest strawberries of the season!

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE

Preparation Time: 15 minutes. Chilling Time: Six hours.

250g plain flour • 50g cup granulated sugar • 1 tablespoon baking powder • 1/2 teaspoon salt • 115g unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces • 180ml double cream • 250g fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar • Whipped cream, for serving

Preheat your oven to 425°F (220°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the cold butter pieces to the bowl, and use a pastry cutter or your fingers to work the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse sand. Add the double cream to the bowl, and stir until the dough just comes together. Be careful not to overwork the dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead it gently a few times to bring it together. Pat the dough into a circle that is about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick, and use a biscuit cutter or glass to cut out circles of dough. Place the circles on the prepared baking sheet, and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown. When the shortcakes are done, remove them from the oven and let them cool for a few minutes.

While the shortcakes are baking, toss the sliced strawberries with two tablespoons of sugar in a medium bowl. Set aside to macerate for a few minutes.

To assemble, split the shortcakes in half horizontally. Spoon a generous amount of macerated strawberries onto the bottom half of each shortcake, and top with a dollop of whipped cream. Place the top half of the shortcake on top, and serve immediately. n

In the KITCHEN

Easy peasy, summer breezy... this month we’ve a simple to ensure a whole season of strawberry satisfaction...

STRAWBERRY MALLOW MOUSSE

Preparation Time: 15 minutes. Chilling Time: Six hours. 400g pack local strawberries • Grated zest and juice 1 orange 40g caster sugar • 250g mini white marshmallows

2 x 200g tubs fromage frais • 2 tbsp roughly chopped pistachios

Reserve six small strawberries for decoration. Hull and roughly chop the rest and put them in a saucepan with the orange zest and juice, plus sugar.

Stir over a gentle heat until the sugar has dissolved, then simmer for 5–10 minutes until the strawberries are soft and pulpy. Mash with a fork and stir in the marshmallows until melted. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool. Fold the fromage frais into the strawberry mixture and spoon into six serving glasses. Chill for at least six hours, until set. Hull and slice the reserved strawberries and arrange on top of the mousses. Scatter over the pistachios to serve. n

Thousands of recipes can be found at www.waitrose.com/recipes.

Wine Enjoying Local

From being regarded with a sense of derision on the continent, in recent years the English winemaking profession has come of age. It is now producing some really good award-winning wines to rival even the finest appellations of France... and there’s no better time to enjoy English wine than during English Wine Week, which takes place this month!

Words: Rob Davis.

FEW EXPERIENCES are quite as satisfying as silencing your critics. So the owners of England’s 897 vineyards must be feeling very satisfied right now.

Of course we’re not suggesting that there’s an upside to climate change, but with the warming of the planet, the climate traditionally associated with the Champagne region of France has moved gradually north to England. And with a need to adapt, and to diversify as a reaction to the fact that consumers would rather import food these days than support our own farmers, landowners like Tim & Zoe Beaver have recently been able to grow grapes with great success, and produce some truly spectacular wines, probably ruffing a few plumes on the continent in the process.

Tim & Zoe planted 13,500 vines in May 2021, then 3,000 Pinot Noir Précoce vines in May. They necessitate a few years to establish before they can yield a decent harvest and so the couple have been anticipating this year’s grape harvest in late summer which should see their first crop destined for the winery.

Until then they’ve been working with a leading partner in the industry to already

determine the blend they’ll use which, so far, they’ve created and sold as a ‘white label’ wine under The Rutland Vineyard brand. Their vineyard in Ketton has been created on an escarpment with jurassic limestone, and allows visitors to enjoy the fresh air, the sight of rows and rows of vines, a glass or two of chilled wine and the accompaniment of a cheese board too.

Look out for vineyard tours (e.g.: Friday 11th August, booking essential as numbers are limited) and tastings (£20/person, from 6pm Fridays), and enjoy the couple’s Bacchusbased white, plus an unoaked Chardonnay, a rosé, a Pinot Noir-style red, and an English fizz which is Champagne in all but name thanks to protected geographic status.

Elsewhere there’s a 1km walking trail to enjoy, an apiary and for the high summer months, Tim & Zoe have planted tens of thousands of sunflower seeds for this year’s charity, Don’t Lose Hope in Bourne and hope to raise up to £5,000 for the group.

Other vineyards in the region include the Hanwell Wine Estate which was established in 1975 at Hickling Pastures, near Melton Mowbray.

It’s open Friday, Saturday and Sunday and produces or retails its Eglantine and Hanwell wines with delivery to the door available too.

Northamptonshire, meanwhile, has two vineyards; Joyce Boulos-Hanna’s New Lodge at Earls Barton and Fleur Fields, established by Bill Hulme in 2000 and now producing its flagship Champs D’Amour sparkling wine.

n The Rutland Vineyard is open Wednesday to Saturday, with a Picnic in the Vineyard and celebration of sunflowers in August. You can also purchase wine from the tasting barn by the glass or to take home, visit Tasting Barn, Barrowden Road, Ketton, PE9 3RJ, see therutlandvineyard.com.

Top of the Drops: English Wine in Numbers

The Rutland Vineyard.

n There are now 3,758 hectares (9,285 acres) under vine in the UK, an increase of 70% compared to five years ago.

n There are now 897 vineyards in England and Wales, plus 195 wineries in England, with a further two in Wales.

n The five most popular grape varieties planted in Britain are Chardonnay (1,179ha); Pinot Noir (1,164ha); Pinot Meunier (327ha); Bacchus (264ha) and Seyval Blanc (117ha). Less common varieties include Solaris, Reichensteiner, Rondo, Pinot Gris and Müller-Thurgau.

n The most popular English counties for cultivating vines are Kent, West Sussex, East Sussex and Hampshire.

n British wine sales in 2021 totalled 9.3 bottles, up from 7.1m bottles in 2020. 63% of the bottles produces were sparkling; 37% were still.

n 38% of British wine is sold at the cellar door (i.e.: direct), 19% via producers’ websites. 13% is sold by multiples, 12% by independent retailers, 14% is sold to trade and 4% is exported.

n 98% of British wine is produced using the Traditional Method (i.e.: it’s Champagne in all but name), 81% is white. 68% of still British wine is white; 17% is rosé; 14% is red.

n The British wine industry employs 10,318 people full time, 41% female, 59% male.

Pinot Noir Premium Gin from Essendine

A limited edition offering from Andrew & Fiona Beamish of Mallard Point in Essendine

It was a long-standing dream of Andrew and Fiona to establish a distillery and vineyard in the area, having toured Australian vineyards in their youth. The two purchased Church Farm in 2012, established Mallard Point in April 2019 then planted and nurtured their vines for three years. Today the couple offer their London Dry gin redolent of jasmine and honeysuckle, plus this limited-edition gin steeped on pressed Pinot Noir grapes. Look out for English Rose, a third, blush edition to Mallard Point’s range. n £44 / 70cl / 42% ABV, www.mallardpoint.co.uk.

The Wine Cellar

BRITANNIA RULES: Great British premium fizz to embarrass our continental chums!

The signature wine of Nyetimber is a classic blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier, created by the traditional method: it’s elegant,intense and sublime, £36 / 75cl / 12% ABV.

A superb rosé from His Majesty’s back garden, Great Windsor Park. Doubtless a few bottles of this were consumed at the Coronation, with aromas of fresh, British strawberries and red berries. A lovely mousse and lasting finish, £55.19 / 75cl / 12% ABV.

Wine of the Month

Gusbourne Brut Reserve 2019

£45 / 75cl / 12% ABV

Gusbourne’s vineyards are located in Appledore, Kent and near Goodwood in West Sussex. In 2017 the sites were unaffected by frost and there was an early, fruitful flowering in mid-June. The 2017 vintage was thus a beautiful example of Gusbourne’s Brut Reserve: light golden in colour with a fine, delicate mousse and aromas of green apple, and nectarine. Fresh, fruit-driven with peach and nectarine with baked pastry.

n Purchase by bottle or case (£270/six) at www.gusbourne.com.

England’s Best Non-Alcoholic Wine

A non-alcoholic tipple from London-based Nine Elms, No.18 Ruby Velven is the first in a series of releases from the brand specially designed to complement food. It takes the juices from four different varieties of berry and botanical infusions from 20 different flowers, herbs & spices. It’s quite the cocktail of botanicals. The idea is to sip it neat alongside a good meal, though a dash of tonic wouldn't go amiss either. n £15 / 75cl / 0.3% ABV, masterofmalt.com.

Kit’s Coty is Chapel Down’s best area of vineyard, yielding this ‘premium’ range of 100% Chardonnay wine. Rich and elegant with incredible purity, £720 / Six x 75cl / 12.5% ABV.

n Our featured wines are available from the best local independent wine merchants, supermarkets and online, prices are RRP and may vary from those stated.

ENJOY SOME FIZZY-OH!-THERAPY THIS MONTH AS WE CELEBRATE SOME PHENOMENAL ENGLISH SPARKLING WINES THAT ARE PUTTING EVEN THE BEST CHAMPAGNE TO SHAME

A CREATIVE RESIDENCE

Situated near Stamford, artist and writer Ruth Rosengarten created her home with husband Ian, seeking to provide a modern, functional property to inspire a sense of calmness and functionality...

Words: Rob Davis.

THE DETAILS

The Styx, Southorpe, near Stamford

Location: Stamford five miles.

Provenance: Stylish and contemporary three-bedroom family home with Scandinavian influences and versatile space.

Rooms: Currently three reception rooms (sitting room, snug, breakfast kitchen) plus study with basement studio and first floor library, three bedrooms and annexe.

Guide Price: £1,450,000.

Find Out More: Pelham James Unique Homes, Oakham LE15 7GH. Call 01572 497 070 or see www.pelhamjames.co.uk.

INDIVIDUALITY is a truly precious quality, and this month’s property is testimony to how the exercising of creativity can produce something really very beautiful. When Ruth Rosengarten and her late husband Ian came to design their property, his flair as an engineer and Ruth’s appreciation for modern design combined to great effect, whilst still fitting neatly into Stamford’s local property vernacular.

The couple moved from a Georgian house, seeking to create somewhere a bit more sleek and modern. They acquired the plot in 2006 and embarked upon a two-year build with Scandia-Hus to create an energy-efficient property that blended modernity and functionality, plus the clean lines of a Scandinavian-inspired home with the warmth and sense of beauty that you’d expect from a property in the Georgian town of Stamford.

The property’s layout has been rather cleverly designed to allow it to be reconfigured to suit successive owners’ requirements, with the ground floor’s entrance hallway opening onto a snug, currently

Above: At the heart of the home is an open-plan living kitchen with white surfaces and a light teal Aga, plus steps leading to a sunken terrace.

used as a cinema room for Ruth’s art house movie nights and opera screenings for friends, plus a sitting room equipped with a wood burner, and bifold doors opening up onto a sunken courtyard.

To the rear of the property is a large balustraded study space with stairs leading down to a basement studio, ideal for creatives and artists, but also for use as a games room for youngsters.

On the first floor of the property is a galleried landing and a space which could be modified to create an additional bedroom space but is currently used as a library.

The principal bedroom suite is more than generous... even before factoring in its two dressing rooms, and a large en suite. Elsewhere on the first floor is a guest bedroom with en suite and a third bedroom too.

Adding to the property’s versatility is a separate annexe above the double garage, self-contained with a shower room and kitchenette.

“We’d never designed a property but Ian was definitely spatially-gifted and we both shared the same concept for somewhere functional but attractive and with plenty of attention to detail invested in its design.”

Beyond the hallway with its open-tread and glass staircase is a boot room and then steps down to the breakfast kitchen with its white contemporary units, and white Corian worktops, the clean contemporary look softened slightly by the kitchen’s light teal Aga. Describing herself as the coffee police, Ruth has equipped it with a Jura coffee machine, and modern appliances too, with a separate utility room for white goods, with subversively bright red cabinetry. >>

>> After an early childhood in Israel, Ruth arrived in Stamford via Africa, where she studied towards a degree in Fine Art, then England where she achieved an MA in Art History at The Courtauld Institute of Art and finally to Lisbon where she met Ian, returning to the UK.“I’m a city dweller, definitely. We moved to Stamford and it was unusual for me not to live in a city, but the town really did grow on me, I thought it was genteel and beautiful.”

Working towards her PhD, Ruth continued as an art historian but also published non-academic work including her 2022 book Second Chance: My Live in Things, in which she explores the subject of memory and how we form attachments to objects. The book serves as a memoir which considers why we can become attached to the inanimate... for instance, bricks and mortar?

It’s rather easy to see why anyone might find themselves attracted to The Styx, with its versatile accommodation and wealth of living space. But for someone with very personal memories of the house, – and how it came to be designed and completed – Ruth in particular should be especially proud. A move to London beckons, where the artist and author can be closer to her increasing commitments to a busy art ‘n’ lit scene. The place is now on the market, and it represents a very compelling prospect for its next custodians! n

n Main Street, Teigh Guide Price: £1,100,000

Beautifully refurbished and tastefully extended stone property occupying a large plot with gardens and a grass paddock extending to approximately 1.9 acres. Four bedrooms and open plan kitchen diner plus sitting room. www.murrayestateagents.co.uk

n Post Office Lane, Lyndon Guide Price: £1,100,000

Immaculately presented thatched cottage, sitting in the heart of the popular village of Lyndon with off-road parking, garaging and a wonderful south-facing garden. Four bedrooms, three bathrooms, three reception rooms. www.jamessellicks.com

n Waters Edge, Wansford Guide Price: £1,500,000

Totally unique architect designed house, built from coursed Clipsham Limestone with ashlar quoins under a conservation tiled roof. Enjoying a riverside location with riparian rights. Five bedrooms, living room with separate snug, living kitchen. www.kingwest.co.uk

Uncovering the hidden property market

Selling off-market was long seen as the preserve of individuals in the public eye who didn’t want people peering at their décor on property portals, but this is no longer the case.

Whilst the wider UK property market changed significantly over the last 6 months as the number of buyers actively seeking property reduced, this is not the case across all property markets and areas. Indeed, around Stamford and Rutland, the most attractive addresses continue to generate significant demand from active buyers that outnumber properties for sale. As a case in point, one prime selling agent recently stated that whilst last summer on average 15 buyers were viewing a property before it sold, now the number is 7 – a significant drop but still leaving 6 buyers on the hunt.

One means of responding to this imbalance is a greater interest with selling off-market with another local agent claiming that 25% of their sales in the first 3 months of 2023 were never advertised on a property portal or in a branch window.

So, with properties actively changing hands away from the open market, buyers should be alert to the fact that there are potentially more properties to buy than can be seen on property portals.

Why are homes sold off-market?

Where once the decision to sell off-market was typically driven by the desire for

discretion, now it’s likely to be about practicality as much as privacy.

Although it is much easier to have an offer accepted on your next home if you’ve already agreed the sale of your current property, the scarcity of homes visibly for sale means that those with a good property to sell in a desirable location are likely to have a sale agreed very quickly and then feel under immense pressure to find somewhere to move to just as fast. Selling off-market can offer a solution to this dilemma, as it gives sellers more control over the pace of the sale, a longer window in which to make their dates align, not to mention the likelihood of a smoother sale.

An increasing trend

In the local Rutland market and surrounding areas, Garrington has seen a shift in the surging popularity of off-market sales. Historically off-market activity has been greatest in winter, but this year the winter peak has continued through into Spring.

This shift in seasonality marks a trend that looks set to stay and Garrington expects off-market transactions to continue to represent a significant proportion of sales moving forward. Whilst it is a method of sale most prevalent in the prime property markets, it is not always limited to the most expensive homes, with properties of all shapes and sizes likely to be sold this way on an ongoing basis.

How to find an off-market home to buy

For those aiming to buy off-market, registering your interest with local estate agents as a serious and proceedable buyer is a good start, but to access the full range of the hidden market you need to engage a reputable and experienced buying agent who will have won the trust and confidence of a network of professional connections in addition to the estate agents. Good buying agents frequently hear about offmarket properties first and can quite literally put their client at the front of the queue. Garrington also have access to exclusive software which assists in identifying potential offmarket properties in clients’ specific search areas. As the first to view a property, you can also be the first to put in an offer, which, if backed up by good intelligence and a strong buying position, can also be the most successful.

Garrington’s property consultants help buyers to find and purchase properties that meet their lifestyle requirements. Their local expertise and in-depth knowledge of the property market helps homebuyers to consider a wider choice of properties and purchase more effectively.

Tel. 01780 408377.

Email info@garrington.co.uk

www.garringtoneastmidlands.co.uk

Kate Vincent from Garrington Property Finders discusses the prevailing trend of properties being sold off-market and how to secure these hidden homes.

Kate Vincent Garrington

ARTS & CRAFTS

This month we’ve a fine selection of fabrics for high summer from William Yeoward, inspired by the Arts & Crafts movement...

Curtains in Hatfield, sofas in Lembata, indigo colourway, from William Yeoward.

To make the best of these fabrics, seek out one of the county’s leading interior design specialists to create bespoke soft furnishings and decoration for your interiors...

Above: Ariana Amethyst Table Lamp, £1,350.

Top/Right: Tanjina Side

Table in Venetian White Oak, £1,990; Nyla Sage Table Lamp, £990; Till Chair, from £3,650. Right: Various cushions from £85 - £125. All William Yeoward.

colourway,

Stamford & Rutland Interiors: Broughtons: Leicester, 0116 2341888,www.broughtons.com.

Delcor Interiors: Stamford, 01780 762579, www.delcor.co.uk. Elizabeth Stanhope Interiors: Oakham, 01572 722345, www.elizabethstanhope.co.uk. Hunters of Stamford: 01780 757946, www.huntersinteriors.co.uk. Sarah Harding Interiors: Uppingham, 01572 823389, sarahhardinginteriors.co.uk.

Footstool in Lamalera, spice

ottoman in Persina, blood orange colourway, sofa in Irene spice, curtains in Pensthorpe, spice.

www.sarahhardinginteriors.co.uk

Tel: 01536 410 777 www.colesforfires.co.uk

Open

Professional Interior Design Service Re-Upholstery and Soft Furnishings

Image: William Yeoward

Creativity & Style with HUNTERS INTERIORS

Working with an interior designer should be a rewarding partnership, bringing together each element of your project with cohesion and individuality. One of the most well-regarded studios for such an experience is Hunters Interiors at Uffington...

THE PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE, the flair for design... and of course, the encyclopaedic knowledge of suppliers. Those are just three of the advantages of working with one of the area’s best interior design studios.

Established in 2001, Hunters Interiors is based in the thoroughly pretty former stableblock of Copthill Farm, in a setting that reflects the area’s vernacular of classic country interiors.

Candida Smith & Georgina Teesdale have been with the business from the start and took on Hunters Interiors in 2014, remaining popular with anyone seeking anything from the creation of a single set of curtains or blinds to the cohesive design of a room or an entire property.

Helping with delivering their clients’ projects, Candida, Georgina and the Hunters team have access to 1,000s of fabrics and wallcoverings, with about 700 sample books in the studio alone from the best names in the profession: Zoffany, GPJ Baker, Colefax, Lewis & Wood, Nina Campbell, Osbourne & Little and so on.

But both agree that whilst technical expertise and access to the country’s leading brands is important, it’s the collaborative approach to working with clients and their ability to inspire the customer and help them to interpret their own visions that remains their greatest asset.

“Getting to know a client is really important because homes are really personal, and it’s not for an interior designer to impart their own ideas, but rather allow the client to bring theirs to fruition.”

“We created The Hayloft, our coffee shop, as a response to the fact that people wanted to spend time in the studio, browsing and soaking up a bit of inspiration.”

“It’s meant that customers can come in, relax and give their ideas a chance to come to mind without feeling rushed.”

“We’re then able to provide the industrywide knowledge of what’s available and the contacts to create totally bespoke – and by extension British-made – sofas, chairs and footstools, headboards, cabinetry and other items. If these need to be a few centimetres taller, wider or upholstered in a different fabric, we can accommodate that: it’s all part of offering a full design consultation.”

“With lighting, accessories, carpets and flooring too, as well as a contact book which is bulging with trusted tradespeople for installing and decorating, we can not only provide interior design, infused with creativity and style, but also peace of mind and help with project management, too.”

Horse Power

Despite facing decline and near-extinction in the 20th century, dedicated breeders and enthusiasts are keeping their favourite breeds alive and exhibiting them with pride at events like the Rutland Show...

HEAVY HORSES, Shire Horses, Draft Horses… the terms are used interchangeably, but what hasn’t changed is the need to acknowledge how vital the breeds have been throughout history for transportation, ploughing fields, and even in warfare.

While their use has diminished with the rise of mechanised agriculture, heavy horses continue to play an important role in many parts of the world and have a place in our own rural history, and continue to be celebrated at country shows like the Rutland Show, which brought back the Heavy Horses a couple of years ago, only for them to become one of the most anticipated attractions at the event.

The origins of heavy horses can be traced back to ancient times. Early civilisations used horses for transportation, but it wasn't until the Middle Ages that people began to selectively breed horses for specific tasks.

In Europe, horses were bred to be larger and stronger in order to plough fields and pull carts. These horses were the ancestors of today's heavy horses and one of the most forward-thinking breeders was Joseph Foljambe, a landowner and agricultural innovator in Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire who was a passionate advocate for the use of heavy horses in farming, and he made it his mission to develop the perfect working animal.

To achieve this goal, Foljambe crossed several different breeds, including the Shire, Suffolk Punch, and Belgian draft horse.

The result was the Osberton Horse, a large, powerful animal that was capable of pulling heavy loads and working for long hours in the fields. Foljambe’s breeding program was a great success, and his Osberton Horses became widely known for their strength and endurance. They were exported to countries around the world, including Australia and Canada, where they helped to open up new agricultural frontiers.

One of the most well-known heavy horse breeds is the Clydesdale. This breed originated in Scotland and was used for ploughing fields and pulling heavy loads.

The Clydesdale is known for its strength, size, and striking appearance. The breed has a distinctive feathering on its legs and a large, muscular body. Today, Clydesdales are used for show, as well as for carriage rides and other tourist attractions.

Another popular heavy horse breed is the Shire. Originally bred in England, the Shire is one of the largest horse breeds in the world. The Shire was used for transportation, agriculture, and even in war. Today, the breed is used for logging and other heavy work, as well as for shows and parades.

In addition to the Clydesdale and Shire, there are many other heavy horse breeds, including the Belgian, Percheron, and Suffolk Punch. Each breed has its own unique characteristics and history, but all are known for their strength, stamina, and gentle disposition. >>

Left: Heavy Horses on show at the 2022 Rutland Show.

>> Despite their size and strength, heavy horses are gentle creatures that have a special connection with humans. They are highly intelligent and can form strong bonds with their owners and handlers. Many people who work with heavy horses describe them as calm, patient, and eager to please.

As the 20th century progressed, the role of the heavy horse began to change. The advent of tractors combustion powered agricultural machinery made it possible to do the same work with less labour, and many farmers began to shift away from horses towards tractors and other machines.

Despite this, however, the legacy of the heavy horse continued to live on in England. Today, there are still breeders and enthusiasts who are dedicated to preserving these magnificent animals, and events such as the Rutland Show, continue to celebrate the history and culture of the region.

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the use of heavy horses for sustainable agriculture and forestry.

Heavy horses are still well-suited to working in fields and forests where heavy machinery would damage the soil or the trees, and their low carbon footprint and gentle impact on the environment could still make them an attractive option for farmers and landowners who are concerned about sustainability.

From their humble beginnings as small, sturdy animals pulling ploughs in the Middle Ages, to their heyday as the workhorses of the industrial revolution, these magnificent creatures have played a vital role in the culture of the English countryside.

While the use of heavy horses in agriculture and transportation may have declined in recent years, their popularity lives on in rural communities like Rutland and through organisations like the Shire Horse Society and British Ridden Heavy Horse Society.

The Rare Breeds Survival Trust estimates that there were just 250 Shire, 199 Clydesdale and 25 Suffolks registered last year, and that from the start of the 20th century, the number of heavy horses has fallen from 2.6m in Britain alone, to fewer than 3,000 worldwide today, fewer still that are working.

Concerns are that without continuing support from breeders, trainers, enthusiasts

and the public at county shows – the animals could be extinct in just a decade, losing forever a legacy of the countryside. n

Above/Right: Heavy Horses at the Rutland Show.

The Shire Horse Society

SINCE 1879, the Shire Horse Society has been working to protect the breed, that was then known as the Old English Breed of Cart Horse.

Over the years the Society has worked hard to ensure that the breed continues to grow and to maintain interest in these magnificent horses.

The Society is also keen to promote awareness of the Shire’s history and future. It does so by organising The Shire Horse Society National Show every March. The Show is the largest gathering of Shire Horses in the country and possibly the world, further details of the National Show can be found on this web site.

The Shire Horse Society is now located in new purpose built premises based at The Old Dairy in the grounds of Rockingham Castle near Market Harborough.

The core objectives of the Society remain the same: to educate and inspire the next generation of Shire horse breeders. The new facilities allow a greater opportunity for membership participation and interaction with Society events.

n For more information visit The Shire Horse Society, Old Dairy, Rockingham Castle, Market Harborough, LE16 8TH. Call 01536 771611 or see www.shire-horse.org.uk.

Since 1878 the Shire Horse Society has been working to protect the breed...

Earning Their WINGS

Butterflies are fascinating creatures that we should be starting to see more of this summer. This month we’re discovering why the species is so special, what butterflies you should be able to spot and looking at some particularly rare ones...

ATATIMEWHENWE are being encouraged to spend more time in our homes, a way to look after our mental health is by spending time in our gardens. Gardens across the UK have already started waking up to spring and a new addition is the majestic butterfly.

Many butterflies have already started to come out of their winter hibernation from the dry cracks in rocks or protected tree hollows to welcome in the new season and be the first to show their wings. You may have even spotted some of them exercise their wings during the sunnier days in early spring. Soon, all of the freshly emerged butterflies will open their wings for the first time and take flight.

The sight of brightly coloured butterflies gliding across the garden or feasting on flowers is a welcome sign that the warmer months are coming and everything is about to be green and colourful again. Brimstone butterflies are the first to be seen each year.

They have bright yellow-green markings on the wings which makes them hard to mistake for anything else, and they are usually seen feeding on buckthorn plants.

You should be able to see newly emerged orange tipped butterflies - the males are easily identified by the orange tip on the forewings.

It’s very hard to miss the peacock butterfly with its bold red colour and four beady ‘eyes’ on its wings. These markings are to deter predators and the peacock even creates a

hissing sound as protection. Keep a look out for blue markings at the edge of the wings as you might be mistaking a peacock for a tortoiseshell butterfly.

We spoke to Richard Fox, Associate Director of Butterfly Conservations, in early April when we had a bout of warm weather.

“There are a surprising number of species of butterfly which are going out of hibernation already,” says Richard. “In just the last few days we have had recorded sights of brimstone, peacock, small tortoiseshell and red admiral all getting active as the weather is warming.”

“There’s so much life waking up for spring in our gardens and outdoor spaces and many of us might have a bit more opportunity to explore them than usual,” says Julie Williams, Chief Executive at Butterfly Conservations. “It’s proven that time in nature can have beneficial effects on your mental health.”

Right: The orange tip butter fly covered in a dusting of pollen. Above: Small tortoiseshell butter fly.

Top: The swallowtail butter fly. Main: Probably the most recognisable and the one you will most likely spot out in the garden, the peacock butter fly.

Butterflies are such a special yet vital creature that also happens to make our world a little more colourful.

The distinct patterns and colouration of each species and the dainty fluttering of their wings through our gardens and parks is a welcome sight, but importantly, they drink nectar from blossoming flowers, accidentally pollinating other flowers to keep our green spaces flourishing.

Like bees, butterflies pick up pollen while they sip a flower’s nectar. They fly off to other plants carrying the pollen with them, helping to pollinate the plant species.

It is said that around one third of the food people eat relies on the work of pollinators such as butterflies so we need to do all we can to keep them in our ecosystem.

The life cycle of a butterfly is truly amazing, each following the same four life stages; the egg, the caterpillar, the chrysalis, and finally the magnificent adult butterfly. Each stage is unique to each species of butterflies, which

is part of what makes watching butterflies so fascinating.

When a butterfly first emerges with wings crumpled you will often see the butterfly hang with its wings down, pumping the wings to straighten them out.

The lifespan of most adult butterflies is about two to three weeks but varies greatly among species. In their lifespan, the female butterflies must find a mate and the right plants on which to lay their eggs to begin the butterfly life cycle all over again.

As summer starts to arrive, many butterflies start to disappear and it’s time for some of the most beautiful butterflies to shine. This includes the swallowtail, black hairstreak, large blue, marsh fritillary and the glanville fritillary.

Sadly, the butterfly populations are at risk due to environmental pressures like habitat loss. Fortunately, we can all take small actions that can help ensure the survival of the butterfly race.

One way to do this is to create butterfly habitats and bug hotels in your own garden, with three key factors that allow butterflies of all varieties to thrive; food, water and a safe space to lay their eggs.

Each different variety of butterfly chooses different plants to lay their eggs on and different plants to feed on but with a little research, each one of us can help keep these sun-loving creatures alive.

By creating more butterfly-friendly gardens, you are helping to restore the species. Some species can be helped by simply taking care when choosing garden flowers and selecting ones that help them flourish.

Introducing flowers such as bluebells, lavender, primrose or red campions will help the butterflies flock to your garden, enjoying the sunshine sheltered from the wind.

If you have a garden to enjoy, why not plant some butterfly-friendly plants of your own and see these beautiful creatures flutter through your gardens for years to come. n

A Spiritual Replacement for the Defender? Ineos Grenadier

Rarely have form and function come together as successfully... billionaire businessman Jim Ratcliffe reboots his beloved Defender for the 21st century and the results are impressive!

LAND ROVER’S new Defender is impressive. We love it, not withstanding the company’s reputation for questionable reliability. However, with its microchips, driver aids and styling packs, with its V8 engine and with six-figure price tag on top versions, it’s hardly the back-to-basic workhorse that farmers and estate managers and those in the construction industry were craving.

In fact, it’s just another luxury SUV, like all the other luxury SUV models in the company’s lineup.

Jim Ratcliffe, the chemicals billionaire behind Ineos and apparent the richest man in the country had something different in mind, and begged Land Rover to sell him the rights. They refused. Jim went ahead and commissioned his own replacement and give or take a few court battles, the Ineos

Grenadier (named after Jim’s favourite pub) is the result. On sale now, from just 23 ‘retail partners’ – typically farm machinery dealerships – it’s yours for £69,000, and promises to be a bit more rugged than your Land Rover Defender, just as capable, but a bit tougher with fewer gadgets.

Jim was able to pick ‘n’ mix his favourite car parts and so the Grenadier is available with one of two BMW six-cylinder engines, a petrol for power and a diesel for torque. The vehicle’s eight-speed gearbox with its low range provision is from ZF, whilst Carrero beam axles hold up the ladder-frame chassis... even the seats have been sourced from racing seat manufacturer Recaro.

Two seat and four-seat utility wagons are available, and the range-topping Trailmaster and Fieldmaster versions add a rear-view camera, front parking sensors and heated seats to the standard roster of equipment. The thing will tow 3,500kg, it has 2,000kg of loadspace, and its boot is shaped to accept a standard Euro pallet. There’s 5.5 tonnes of winching grunt, diff locks, and pre-wiring for lights, off-road accessories and so on controlled via an overhead console a bit like the one you’ll find on a commercial aircraft.

Surprisingly, the car is pretty comfortable off-road, a much better prospect than the old Defender, but the new Defender definitely has the edge on-road. Still, as a functional, farm-friendly utility vehicle, the Ineos Grenadier is a formidable prospect indeed!

THE DETAILS

Ineos Grenadier Fieldmaster

Price: £69,000 (available now).

Powertrain: BMW-sourced 3.0 24V straight six diesel, 249ps, 550Nm torque, 8-speed auto, low range gears.

Performance: 0-60mph: 9.9secs, top speed 99mph, 23-27mpg.

Equipment: Leather interiors, heated front seats, utility flooring (carpets optional, carpet floormats standard), 30/70 split rear door, off-road navigation, Apple Carplay, Android Auto, air con, F/R park distance control, rear camera. n

LETTING off STEAM

This month the Stapleford Miniature Railway gain an apprentice to help run out their steam locomotive, John H Gretton. It’s a chance to see the railway up close and find out more prior to this month’s open day on 10th & 11th June...

Words: Rob Davis.

NOT SO MANY YEARS AGO, if you asked a wide-eyed schoolboy what they wanted to be when they grew up, the answer would be, for example, a spaceman dressed in a tinfoil suit heading off to the moon, or a train driver standing on the footplate of a steam locomotive. Sadly, these days most of them want to be TikTok influencers or YouTubers. But for a particular generation who never quite shook off the fantasy of oily overalls and the ‘peep-peep’ of a locomotive whistle, travelling by steam still evokes excitement, inspired by Brief Encounter, by the Venice Simplon Orient Express, or perhaps by the Mallard’s 126mph record near Grantham in 1938, or perhaps even just the idyllic adventures of Thomas the Tank Engine and his chums on the island of Sodor.

Travelling by steam train retains a visceral sense of romance and drama never quite repeated by contemporary transport. But happily, you can still enjoy the sounds, scent and almost meditative clicketyclack of a steam train on rails at about 100 ‘miniature’ heritage railways across the UK, not least among which is the Stapleford Miniature Railway.

The railway only opens to the public for a few steaming fixtures a year. One of the biggest and most popular events in its calendar take place on 10th & 11th June and 29th & 30th July, then for a Steam Rally during the August bank holiday with classic cars and motorcycles, traction engines, a fun fair, bar, trade stalls and much more.

But the event’s biggest draw will definitely be the chance for families and steam enthusiasts to enjoy a two-mile steam train journey along the railway courtesy of one of the group’s five coal-fired, one oil-fired or one heritage diesel locomotives. Steam trains especially necessitate rather more love, preparation and skill than the car in your garage, and so the Friends of Stapleford Miniature Railway are constantly giving their heritage locomotives attention to ensure they remain in good condition.

On Easter Sunday the volunteers gained probably the worst apprentice they’ve ever encountered as I visited to help prepare their 1948 Curwen Green Atlantic locomotive – renamed John H Gretton after the 3rd Lord Gretton – for a few trips around the railway.

It takes about an hour and a half to steam up from cold, a process that’s necessarily steady to prevent thermal shock damage to the boiler. Plenty of time, then, to talk to the railway’s Nigel Spencer and today’s driver Dean Allsopp about the railway and to undertake a bit of polishing.

“The adjacent Stapleford Park and its grounds were opened to the public by the second Lord Gretton in 1953 and he was looking for an additional attraction for visitors,” says Nigel. “He purchased (second hand) two steam locomotives, six coaches and 2,000ft of track.”

“The first line from the Old Stable Hill station to the Hall opened in 1958, with the first extension to the Lake opening in 1959. By the end of 1962, over 21,000 people every year were enjoying travelling on the railway. Following the sale of the house in 1985 and its transformation into a country house hotel, the railway was put into storage until Jennifer, Lady Gretton, the wife of the late 3rd Lord Gretton and their son, the current Lord Gretton sought a group of enthusiasts to restore and preserve the railway.”

I’m listening of course, but also working hard. Into my hand an unlikely tool in the armament of a steam railway enthusiast has been thrust. >>

>>It’s a red can of Mr Sheen. My job is to polish up the locomotive and then polish the brass nameplate with a rag and a tin of Brasso. The latter seems a bit more appropriate as a cleaning product, somehow.

All the while, the coal has been loaded into the firebox and the engine is warming up nicely. There’s a bit of a chill in the air so I’m grateful to be close to the cosy engine, which is sufficiently insulated to retain its heat, becoming warm but not burning hot to the touch.

The group’s engines are stored in a large shed with a traverser – a short length of rails on a wooden platform which slides horizontally across the shed – helping to manoeuvre a particular engine out of the shed an onto the rails. Once out of the loco shed, kindling and coal are used to get the fire started, with water added to the rear tank. Once up to steam, the engine makes its way to the station awaiting carriages, passengers and a top-up of water.

As any heritage railway enthusiast will tell you, not all coal is equal. Our Welsh dry steam anthracite coal has a sufficient calorific value to generate the best heat: after all, it’s steam and therefore heat that we’re seeking, not smoke, as generated in greater volume by lignite or bituminous coal.

The gases from all of that lovely heat, about 1,000°c in temperature, move through the

flues or tubes in the main boiler vessel which contains water and boil it into steam to a very specific pressure. The steam rises through the steam dome, down the dry pipe and into the valve through which, via a piston, the driving wheels gain their ability to turn.

The driver therefore needs to keep the fire stoked but this isn’t simply a case of shovelling in coal like mad; it’s more about keeping an eye out to ensure there’s sufficient temperature to keep the boiler producing steam and anticipating when extra power will be needed – on uphill gradients, for example.

In front of me is the regulator which controls the amount of steam entering the cylinders, and a couple of glass water gauges.

It’s imperative that these contain water at all time to prevent the whole engine from exploding.

As well as speaking with Nigel and Dean, we’ve been joined by Nigel Harris, Rail Magazine’s editor who soberly underwrites this warning by pointing out that we’re basically sitting on a pressure cooker.

Above: Rail enthusiast Dr Peter Waterman opened the station building in 2008.

>> In addition to the regulator, there’s a lever for engaging a reverse or forward direction of movement, a brake and of course the delightful lever which makes the engine call out with that ‘peep-peep’ sound for which we all have such affection.

Nearly up to temperature and Nigel Spencer continues to tell me about the railway. With about two miles of track, a journey around the estate takes about 20 minutes. The group not only have to build or maintain the engines they run but also take care of the land adjacent to the track.

The railway line is created to one-fifth scale – in other words, 20% of the size of a full-scale railway – with a 10 ¼” gauge (the width of the rails) which is one of a few adhered-to standards.

Pretty much all of the principles, mechanics and safety procedures, though, are identical to that of a full-sized steam railway.

For instance, the driver must be in physical possession of a ‘token’ which is an object that grants ‘ownership’ of a particular section of track. Without that, they can’t proceed and just like a full-size railway, not possessing a token or passing a signal at danger carries serious consequences.

There are no ‘standard parts’ or off-the-shelf locomotives for miniature railways, either, so as well as running the railway, and operating the engines, the group has to maintain the line, clearing leaves for example and managing the area surrounding the track, including the railway’s 80-metre tunnel.

STAPLEFORD MINIATURE RAILWAY

Right: The two-mile railway has an 80m tunnel and enjoys views of Stapleford Park.

“To my absolute delight I’ve just discovered the lever which makes the engine call out with that ‘peep-peep’ sound for which we all have such affection...!”

These days, in the event of needing to create a new engine, it’s possible to exchange schematics online, but designs and engineering requirements vary to such a degree that each locomotive ends up becoming a one-odd bespoke engineering project.

Also in the loco shed is the New York Chicago and St Louis Berkshire class loco, built at Stapleford by Richard Coleby, Bob Moore and Neil Simkins in 1970/1971, the construction of it was a two-year full-time job for three engineers.

Weighing in at two tonnnes, it’ll pull 10 tonnes of carriages and passengers, so to say it’s ‘miniature’ it still has a heck of a lots of power.

Meanwhile, from its original construction in 1948, the locomotive that we’ll be running today may have been constructed in Marlborough but it has been modified and re-engineered constantly by the group at Stapleford.

Locomotives are referred to by their wheel arrangement, and so in our case, John H Gretton is a 4-4-2 locomotive with four smaller wheels carrying the steering bogie, four powered wheels and two trailing wheels to support the firebox.

We’re up to temperature not just on the locomotive but outdoors too. The mist has burnt off, the sun is trying to shine down on the spring bulbs and there’s even a bit of blue sky. Dean climbs aboard, pushes forward on the gears, notches the selector into place and gently eases the regulator to take the engine a couple of hundred yards up to the station. There, we await the carriages and I’m tasked with filling up the tender with water.

Like the rest of the railway, the team has built and maintain the ticket office and station. Still working with its President Jennifer, Lady Gretton and the owner, the current Lord Gretton, the FSMR supports LOROS and has donated nearly £100,000 to the hospice, which provides care and support for terminally ill patients and their families, since partnering with them in 1995.

Our journey around the railway begins, taking in the group’s tunnel, sights of the lake, open farmland and Stapleford Park in the middle-distance. A couple of pheasants skittishly cross the line during our journey and a squirrel scampers up a tree. Throughout the journey the motion, the warmth and the scent of the coal burning in the engine creates that visceral rewarding experience long since lost to diesel power.

Back at the station, I’m offered the chance to sit in the driver’s seat, nervously acknowledging that the locomotive is completely unique and priceless. Nonetheless, with a steady easing of the regulator, the enormously long train with its carriages gently moves forward. There’s not a biting point like a car’s clutch, but certainly a driver senses the point where you can feel the pressure is sufficient and you’re on the cusp of movement.

I’m very judicious with my use of the control, and keener still when it’s time to reverse back into the station and not crash a carriage or two through the barriers. Reversing is unfeasibly challenging given how long the train is with nine carriages and given that a driver needs to ease off the throttle at just the right time and just coast back into the station… I certainly wouldn’t fancy parallel parking the thing!

Still, I’ve driven a train – actually driven a steam train – and I feel utterly privileged to have been entrusted with the group’s priceless locomotive. Even among just a small number of enthusiasts during my visit, the feeling of nostalgia and affection for the railway is palpable.

When the group opens its carriage doors to passengers for June’s steaming event, for its Salute to the 1940s event in July and for its Vintage Steam Rally over the August bank holiday, the atmosphere is set to be even greater, reminding passengers that the halcyon days of steam travel are just as exciting and enjoyable as ever! n

Find Out More: Stapleford Park Miniature Railway is open for its steaming day on 10th & 11th June, then for its Salute to the 1940s from 29th - 30th July and for its steam rally during August’s bank holiday with a fairground, classic cars, and more. For information about the group, see www.fsmr.co.uk

BRIGHT & BEAUTIFUL

Shorts, tops and playsuits for high summer with bold colours and a bright outlook!

White Jacquard Blouse, £79, Cream Denim Shorts, £59, www.mintvelvet.co.uk

1. Alexandra Farmer Premium Printed Blouse & Shorts, £139 & £79. www.coastfashion.com. 2. Ombré T-Shirt, £69 & Denim Shorts, £59. www.mintvelvet.co.uk. 3. Bermuda Shorts, £175 & T-Shirt, £95. www.maxmara.com. 4. Ayaaz Tailored Shorts, £95 & Myyia Blazer, £195. www.tedbaker.com. 5. Linen Viscose Woven Short, £89 & Ribbed Vest, £45. www.karenmillen.com >>

1. Linen Belted Playsuit, £89. www.karenmillen.com

2. Cheesecloth Blouse & Shorts, £60 & £50. www.boden.co.uk

3. Meryl Jersey Wave Print Playsuit, £79. www.phase-eight.com

4. Mosaic Print Shorts & Top, £45 & £45. www.monsoon.co.uk

5. Silk Shantung Short, £655 & Crewneck Jumper, £1,175. www.ralphlauren.co.uk. 6. Halle Top & Christie Shorts, £59 & £65. www.hobbs.com n

UP & RUNNING

Smart, comfy trainers for summer walks and days out with the family...

LK Bennett, £189

Ted Baker, £110

Jimmy Choo, £425

Christian Louboutin, £825

Vivienne Westwood £185

Allsaints, £83 Amiri, £510

Steve Madden, £110

Gucci, £775

Chloe, £595

Nike, £110

Veja, £150

Kurt Geiger London, £169

Golden Goose, £460

Alexander McQueen, £199

Axel Arigato, £255

Burberry, £485

Balenciaga, £735

Feeling the Love

It’s been a busy time for Steph and Alex as the couple have planned their wedding, discovered they’re expecting their first child and have moved house, too... fortunately there was a little bit of time to relax when the two married at The Granary in West Deeping...

Wedding Photographer: Jessy Jones Photography, 07947 514456, www.jessyjonesphotography.co.uk.

“IT’S BEEN a busy year or two,” says Alex, this month’s groom. That’s a bit of an understatement. He and Steph planned their wedding and finally married in August, enjoyed their first Christmas as husband and wife, then discovered they were expecting their first child in January, moving house to accommodate their growing family in March.

Steph is a primary school teacher, Alex is an electrician working in schools and the couple live in Peterborough.

The two met at the Open Door church in Gunthorpe back in 2015, and quickly became good friends, eventually reaching the point whilst cuddled up on the sofa that they had to concede that, in fact, they were as good as in a relationship already.

During Covid, the two co-bubbled together and began looking for a house. Steph had remarked before that the ring her late aunt gifted her would one day be her engagement ring and so Alex sought his future father-in-law Ken’s permission, securing the ring in the process.

September saw Steph’s older brother getting married and so Alex delayed his proposal until October. The two had just picked up the keys to their first house and went to look around the empty property. In the living room, Alex surprised Steph by dropping down on one knee and proposing. Nicely done, we think!

As a youngster, Alex would often drive past The Granary at Molecey Mill, West Deeping, and even did a bit of work there as an electrician. He and Steph were looking for wedding venues when someone pointed out that the place was now a refurbished country house with land to the back and a pretty millstream, an ideal place to host their special day.

WEDDING SUPPLIERS

STEPH & ALEX

“We had in mind a really enjoyable event, a big party with friends and family… with a little bit of a wedding thrown in too!” says Steph. “We went to look around in December, and it was really cold, but the place was still beautiful. Glenn who helped organise the day met us in shorts and a Santa hat! He took us around the place in a golf buggy and we thought it was phenomenal with plenty of history and character. What they’ve done to refurbish the place has been phenomenal. More than that, we really got to know them, they were so welcoming.”

The venue was, in fact, the second element of their wedding that the couple confirmed. The first was the song they’d have for their first dance: Islands in the Stream. It suited the venue perfectly, given the millstream running through the estate. However, after viewing The Granary they got back in the car and turned on the radio only for their song to be playing… a sign, for sure.

Wedding Venue: The Granary at Molecey Mill, West Deeping, 07855 242356, moleceyestates.com.

Marquee/Furnishings: Dottie Events and Hire, 01945 773368, www.dottieeventsandhire.co.uk.

Wedding Dress: Heart Brides, 01353 775212, www.heartbrides.co.uk.

Wedding Hair: Zuri Hair & Beauty, 01733 571253.

Groomsmen’ Attire: Cavani by Maysons, 01733 898155, cavanibymaysons.com.

Catering: Vines, 07856 999820 www.vinescommunities.co.uk.

Floristry: Manna Flowers, 01778 347428, www.mannaflowers.co.uk.

DJ: DSL Productions, 07960 192097. n

The idea was to create a rustic country vibe, with a marquee and furniture in the grounds of Molecey Mill courtesy of Russell and Amanda Carter at Dottie Events and Hire, who provided hessian, fairy lights and everything the couple needed to achieve their look.

Steph chose her dress from Heart Brides of Ely, whilst the groomsmens’ suits were from Cavani by Masons in Peterborough. Bridesman Jonathan also managed to source burgundy tailoring to match bridesmaids Jenna, Sophie and Ellen. Alex’s groomsmen included his brothers Joel and Zack, the latter performing Can Your Feel The Love Tonight on the keyboard as the couple walked down the aisle.

Another sartorial point worth noting is that Steph wasn’t going to be limping around in heels on the big day, wincing in pain, and so

she and Alex both opted to wear Converse sneakers which proved more than comfortable for a long night dancing in a rustic marquee. Peterborough-based Vines Catering kept the guests’ tummies full with a stone-baked pizza oven in the evening, and the couple made their own wedding cake with a tier of carrot cake a must-have, given that it’s Alex’s favourite. Manna Flowers provided the couple’s floristry, and wild flowers for the table decorations in vintage jars and bottles from Dottie Events.

Also making an appearance was Alex’s vintage Mini, which is brought out of the garage on special occasions, for which their wedding definitely qualified. The couple’s photographer, Jessy Jones, was also brilliant, the couple say. They’ve already enjoyed an engagement shoot and wedding photography courtesy of Jessy, and now have her on standby for maternity pictures and a newborn shoot, too!

“One of the nicest things about the venue was the ability to have about 30 people staying over on the night before the wedding,” says Steph. “We had fish ‘n’ chips delivered the night before and we all enjoyed them with a few drinks at dusk, it’s a great setting and again, really just allowed us to spend time together, chilled and happy, which was just the feel we wanted for the day!”

Wedding Photographer: Jessy Jones Photography, 07947 514456, www.jessyjonesphotography.co.uk.

“Manor Farm Flowers provided the couple’s floristry, and wild flowers for the table decorations in vintage jars and bottles from Dottie Events...”

Celebrating St George’s Day at the The George of Stamford

BY GEORGE! We had a great time recently, photographing the return of John Graham’s St George’s Day Lunch at – where else – The George of Stamford, with around 65 guests attending. The event returned after a four-year break, with a guest speaker from Rathbones Group investment bank proving entertaining and informative. Guests enjoyed Champagne and cocktails in the 14th century bar before moving through to the Oak Panelled Dining Room for a three course lunch courtesy of Head Chef Dan Marriott and his team. From around 1100, St George’s help was sought to protect the English army, say English Heritage. In Shakespeare’s Henry V, the monarch calls “Once more unto the breach, dear friends” and cries “God for Harry! England, and St. George!” n

Words & Images: Rob Davis.

Here Comes the Sun

PROTECT YOUR SKIN and ENHANCE YOUR EXPERIENCE SOAKING UP THE SUMMER

1. The Scent of Summertime...

Gucci’s first haute line includes this scent within the Alchemist’s Garden collection. It’s known as The Last Days of Summer, somewhat pessimistically, given that we haven’t had a single day of summer yet, but never mind.

Cedarwoods, cypress, patchouli, vetiver and other woody notes make this a joy to wear all summer long.

£255 / 100ml, www.gucci.com.

2. Moist &

Dior’s Moist & Perfect Cushion Dreamskin foundation features a powerful moisturising agent and SPF50 to provide an on-the-go foundation and skincare product that helps the appearance of pores and redness leaving skin tone even, £27/1g, www.dior.com.

3. Cellular Protection

La Prarie’s lightweight Cellular Swiss UV Protection formula provides protection against UVB and UVA with SPF50 worn over your moisturiser,delivering prolonged hydration for healthy looking skin all summer long, £180/50ml, www.laprairie.com.

4. Sunkissed & Subtle

St Tropez remains our go-to self-tanning lotion often emulated but never bettered. It’s easy to achieve streak-free results, there’s a pleasant scent, it’s non-sticky and realistic. Build up in layers, and enjoy a realistic healthy tan, no sun required, £18/200ml, www.sttropeztan.com.

5. Protection from UV rays from La Mer...

La Mer presents this SPF50 sun protection milk which can be applied under your moisturiser to help defend skin against everyday exposure to UV rays, helping to prevent future discolouration.

A soothing and lightweight formula supplements the skin with healing properties to help protect skin.

£95 / 100ml

www.cremede lamer.co.uk

6. Protection for Lips this Summer...

Ultrasun’s Ultralip Balm isn’t the sexiest looking product compared to, say, Elizabeth Arden’s Cream Lip Protectant Stick, but the latter has an SPF rating of just 15, whilst Ultrasun’s alternative offers SPF50 and a shea butter for a moisturising base, preventing dry lips throughout summer, £8/4.8ml available at www.ultrasun.co.uk.

n All our beauty products are available from local independent stockists unless otherwise stated, please note that prices stated are RRP and may vary.

ALL ABOUT REFLEXOLOGY

Feet of Strength

REFLEXOLOGY is a non-invasive complementary therapy that involves applying pressure to specific points on the feet, hands, and ears (auriculotherapy). It is based on the theory that these points correspond to different parts of the body, and that by applying pressure to them, the body can be stimulated to promote healing and improve overall health.

In the West, the modern form of reflexology was developed in the early 20th century by Eunice Ingham.

The practice of reflexology is based on the idea that the body is divided into different zones, each of which corresponds to a specific part of the body. These zones are believed to run from the top of the head to the tips of the toes, and from the fingers to the tips of the ears.

By applying pressure to these zones, reflexologists believe that they can stimulate the corresponding parts of the body and promote healing.

The benefits of reflexology are numerous and varied. One of the most commonly cited benefits is stress relief. Reflexology is thought to stimulate the release of endorphins, which are the body’s natural painkillers and mood elevators.

By reducing stress and promoting relaxation, reflexology may also help to improve sleep quality and reduce the risk of chronic diseases associated with stress, such as hypertension and heart disease.

Reflexology is also believed to help improve circulation and lymphatic drainage. By stimulating the reflex points on the feet, hands, and ears, reflexologists believe that they can help to increase blood flow to the corresponding parts of the body, which can help to improve overall health and vitality.

Similarly, by stimulating the lymphatic system, reflexology is thought to help eliminate toxins and waste products from the body, which can help to reduce inflammation and improve immune function.

In addition to its physical benefits, reflexology is also believed to have psychological benefits. Many people report feeling more relaxed and calm after a reflexology session, which can help to reduce anxiety and depression.

If you are interested in trying reflexology, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, it is important to find a qualified reflexologist who has been trained in the practice. Second, do be prepared for a different type of massage experience than you may be used to.

Unlike traditional massage, reflexology involves the application of pressure to specific points on the feet, hands, and ears, rather than the entire body. This pressure can be firm, but should not be painful.

During a reflexology session, your reflexologist will typically start by examining your feet or hands to identify any areas of tenderness or tension. They will then apply pressure to the corresponding reflex points, using their hands, fingers, or a specialised tool. You may feel a slight tingling or warmth in the corresponding part of your body, but you should not feel any pain.

A typical reflexology session lasts around 3060 minutes, and most people find it to be a relaxing and enjoyable experience.

Some people may experience some mild discomfort or soreness after a session, but this usually goes away within a few hours. With proper care and attention, reflexology can be a safe and effective way to support your overall health and wellbeing.

n

Reflexology promises holistic benefits to your health and well-being, this month, we investigate an ancient therapy that’s still relevant in the 21st century...

LOCAL PRACTICES

Reflexology in Rutland & Stamford

n Jojo Reflexology, Oakham:

“I established JoJo Reflexology as a result of my own personal experiences with these therapies. To offer others the opportunity to experience the same life enhancing benefits of Reflexology, Facial Reflexology and Zone Face Lift, is something I felt compelled to achieve, not simply to create a business opportunity for myself, but to provide a platform from which I could educate and improve the life experience of others. Whether participating in one treatment or a course of treatments, you will truly be engaging in what can only be described as a life changing experience.

“I have been a Reflexologist for over 10 years and qualified at The Central London School of Reflexology and I am a full member of the Association of Reflexologists. I am certified in Zone Face Lift, Advanced Facial Reflexology, Spinal Reflexology, Maternity and Taiwanese Reflexology.”

Call 07971 477 220 or see www.jojoreflexology.com..

n Stamford Reflexology:

“I am a fully qualified reflexologist with a Level 3 Diploma from the Academy of Reflexology in Northampton,” says Corinne Alexander BA(Hons) MBAcC MAR. “Many of us lead hectic lifestyles and it is thought that ongoing stress lies at the root of many conditions such as headaches, anxiety, insomnia, depression, IBS etc. Reflexology is a safe and natural therapy that can help counter stress and improve your sense of well-being.”

Call 07469 828499 or see www.reflexologystamford.co.uk.

At Market Place Dental Practice, we are an independent local dental practice situated in the heart of Rutland, Uppingham established in 1994. We are focused upon providing holistic and preventative treatments to all our patients whilst using the latest in innovative technology. We pride ourselves on being a long-standing member of the local community and this is evident in our ethos to promote good oral health and hygiene.

NEW PATIENTS WELCOME

At Market Place Dental Practice we offer a full range of dental services including routine dental check-ups, teeth whitening, implants and cosmetic treatments, all designed to enhance your smile and oral health. If you are looking to improve your smile, we will listen carefully to your wishes and explain any recommended treatments. We will then create a bespoke, individualised treatment plan just for you and once your treatment plan has been agreed we will book the appropriate appointment(s) for you.

We strive to provide high quality dental care for all our patients. Care that provides as positive an experience for all our patients as possible.

TEETH STRAIGHTENING IN UPPINGHAM

With continuous advances in technology, orthodontic treatment is becoming more popular amongst all ages. The traditional fixed braces in silver, gold alloy and ceramic as well as plastic aligners such as Invisalign are popular choices for straightening teeth.

FIXED BRACES

Fixed braces are made up of small brackets attached to each tooth and connected by a wire. Different wires are placed and adjusted over time, creating gentle pressure which aligns the teeth accurately into the desired position.

INVISALIGN

Invisalign uses removable plastic aligners that are taken off for eating, drinking and tooth brushing. They have a very subtle appearance, are comfortable and convenient. A series of these aligners, in combination with attachments on the teeth, gently move the teeth over time to improve alignment.

A PERSONAL, PROFESSIONAL, PLEASANT EXPERIENCE at

Green Oakham Dental Care

A dental practice so patient-centric you’ll actually look forward to visiting the dentist?

Treatment so gentle that you’ll actually fall asleep during a root canal procedure?!? This month we meet the team behind Green Oakham Dental Care transforming not only your smile, but also your experience of sitting in the chair too...!

IT’S THE DENTIST you’ll love to visit! If your past experiences of a trip to the dentist is anything less than thoroughly enjoyable, it could be that your old practice – not the profession – is the issue.

Walk into Chadni’s practice, Green Oakham Dental Care on the town’s High Street, and the first impression is the sight and sound of exotic birds and new age music on a high definition screen, and some comfy chairs in reception.

A Warm Welcome

The place doesn’t feel like the waiting room of some ominous clinical establishment, and with a pleasant scent from the reed diffusers, rather than the odour of strong disinfectant and rubber gloves, it feels a bit more Zen-like than any other dental practice you may have visited before.

The calm, user-friendly feel isn’t just superficial either. Underpinning the practice is its approach to providing great care in a modern, fresh environment.

With over a decade in the profession, Chadni has worked across the industry but wanted a place to establish her own practice where she and her team could work their magic on a patient’s oral health, dental functionality and the appearance of a patient’s smile, combining the latest technology, treatments with the tradition of truly holistic patient care.

“It was dentistry at first sight,” she says, recalling when she visited the town and came across a dental practice looking

for new custodians. “The previous dentist’s bedside manner and his approach to patient care was second to none and it was clear that he was very popular.”

“We wanted to continue that philosophy in a new practice, one that would also be at the leading edge of modern dentistry.”

Health First

“We don’t expect a patient to come in seeking a particular course of treatment, nor do we confer a procedure on them in isolation. Instead, we listen to a patient, to their needs and concerns, and instead enfranchise them in their own treatment.”

“We prioritise health, then functionality, and discuss cosmetic dentistry if that’s what the patient is aiming to achieve.”

Serving almost as more of a dental counsellor than a dentist, Chadni and the team present patients with all of their treatment options and ensure that they’re in control of their own care, fully informed.

Specialising in Nervous Patients

“We also specialise in providing support for nervous patients, with breathing techniques, distraction, numbing gels, warmed anaesthetics and even sedation available.”

Exactly how relaxing is the experience, even for nervous patients? Well whilst it’s unlikely patients have a favourite treatment – least of all root canal procedures – it’s exactly that most feared of experiences which Chadni loves to perform most, because she’s so

adept at offering a painless procedure that her patients usually fall asleep in the process!

“It’s clinically intricate, it’s challenging and a lot of people dread it... so it’s the biggest compliment that my clients actually fall asleep during a root canal procedure. Hopefully that speaks volumes about how good we are at making the entire experience painless and stress-free!’

A Confident Smile

Once you have a healthy smile, Green Oakham Dental Care offers a range of procedures for giving you the smile of your dream. Treatment options like Invisalign provide near invisible aligners to help train your teeth into a straighter smile, naturally and gently.

The practice also offers veneers, crowns and implants to transform your smile and boost your confidence, whilst iTero scans create a detailed, high-resolution 3D scan of your whole mouth to enable effective monitoring of ongoing changes and health. The images it creates can be used to create aligners, bridges, crowns, implants and dentures for unprecedented standards of comfort and fit.

“It’s all part of an aim to utilise technology but also create a team which is really enfranchised in patient care; people who want to offer a truly holistic, patient-friendly approach to dentistry that will ensure a visit for a checkup or for treatment isn’t something that you need to fear, but one that you can actually look forward to!” n

Find Out More: Green Oakham Dental Care was established in 2016 with a view to offering holistic patient care from oral hygiene to dental functionality and cosmetic treatments. Staffed by a warm and friendly team, the practice specialises in nervous patients and remains committed to providing high quality, personalised dental care. They’re based on High Street, Oakham, so call 01572 755260 or see www.greenoakhamdentalcare.co.uk to discover a better kind of dentistry.

GREEN OAKHAM DENTAL CARE

Pictured here are Green Oakham Dental Care’s Treatment Coordinator Keeley Cox, Receptionist Hayley Young, Principal Dentist Dr Chadni Patel and co-owner Anand Parekh. Also pictured here is Paddington, part time therapy dog operating in non-clinical areas!

REDISCOVERYOURSMILE

WithInvisalignteeth straightening: Comfortable,effectiveanddiscreet–callusto findoutaboutthis revolutionarytreatment

Teeth Straightening: Discover your smile again using the latest Invisalign technology: removable aligners that gradually straighten your teeth. Comfortable, discreet and removable, you can eat and drink, brush and floss as usual as you gradually achieve a straight, natural smile.

Teeth Whitening: A simple way to transform your smile, improving the overall appearance of your teeth, and bringing a youthful bright smile.

Dental Implants: A safe, well-established way to replace a tooth when it fails, restoring your smile in a permanent, effective way.

New Patients: Going to the dentist shouldn’t be a daunting experience. We take the time to help you feel relaxed and comfortable whilst we care for both your health and appearance.

MONDAY 08:30-18:30

TUESDAY 08:30-17:00

WEDNESDAY 08:30- 18:30

THURSDAY 08:30-17:00

FRIDAY 08:30-17:00

To advertise here call our friendly team on 01529 469977.