South Devon Coast and Country Feb 13 by Devonshire magazine

SOUTH DEVON February / March 2013

Covering South Devon

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for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

Contents Feb-Mar

ISSUE NO 5

6. Forthcoming Events

32. Model Ships

Find out what's on in South Devon.

A dedication for detail - Alan Rapkins.

10. Live Music Roundup

34. The Countryman

Get the info on local live music.

Keep abreast of wildlife matters.

12. Art Gallery What's On

35. Nelson's Parting Shot

Art gallery events and Art Blog.

Thought provoking facts from John Fisher.

Nigel Jones, FCR Esgen, John Fisher, Tony Jackson, Amanda Crump, Ted Gosling, Ardley Chic, Kerry Hornett, Ken Watson, Louise Crossman, Alan Rapkins, Natalie Bucklar-Green, Hanneke Coates-Hoorn, Anne Everest-Phillips, Charlotte Fergie, Jill Cooke, Hazel Fergie, Vivienne Crump.

16. Gifted with Love

38. Those Were the Days

MAGAZINE

Ideas for Valentine's Day.

The beginnings of Devon's big day out.

18. Dreamy Storage Ideas

40. A Trust for Churches

Amanda Crump shares her home tips.

Preserving our churches for the future.

25. Nelson's Column

42. Horse Care

John Fisher's sage viewpoint!

With Natalie Bucklar-Green.

26. Harford Haven

44. The Old Vet'nry

We visit St. Petrock's Church.

Ken Watson elaborates.

28. Lion Attack on Coach

46. Cream of the Crop

A wholly unusual incident!

Business stars of the region.

CONTRIBUTORS

Editor and publisher: Nigel Jones tel. 01395 513383 email: nigel@prestige-media.co.uk Advertising call: 01395 568025/513383 By post: 6 Bennetts Hill, Sidmouth EX10 9XH SOUTH DEVON February / March 2013

Haldon Belvedere (Lawrence Castle)

All images copyright N.Jones unless otherwise credited

Covering South Devon

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

Cover photo: Nigel Jones

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Editor's Letter A warm welcome to the February & March issue of the South Devon Coast & Country magazine. Not long now and we'll start to see the days drawing out a bit further. You really get to know spring is here when you can feel that early season sun warming your back - it's a great feeling, knowing that the best of the year is all ahead. We've been busy here at the magazine, working on a new development that hopefully will benefit everyone in the region. One of my long-term gripes has been the lack of really good "What's On" information provision in the region. If you've tried searching the internet, there's dribs and drabs of event information all over the place, which really negates the usefulness of the internet. Well I'm happy to tell you that there's now a new What's On website for South Devon called: southdevonhub.co.uk The reason we've called it "hub" is because that's exactly what it is,

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

a hub, where anyone with events they need to promote, can access it to feed their event dates into this hub. There are currently 1,600 local organisations registered with this new website that wish to use it to promote their events. What's great is that it's all FREE to use, and if you're an organisation looking to promote your events, the website allows you to log into your page and add events instantly, it's that easy! To visit this new website, go to:

www. southdevonhub .co.uk From now on, you will see this website address appear regularly in all the magazine titles we produce. Dear reader, I invite you to try it out for yourself. Kind regards Nigel Jones (Editor)

Where will you find some of the best surgeons in the UK for your hip or knee op? According to the Daily Mail, they’re in Exeter. Exeter, right on your doorstep, is an internationally renowned centre of excellence for Orthopaedic surgery. Several Exeter-based Consultants were named when the Daily Mail canvassed the views of leading surgeons, asking them who they would refer to if their own nearest and dearest needed surgery. A hip or knee replacement can give you a new lease of life. It’s a big decision and you need to feel confident in your surgeon. Call Exeter Hospital on 01392 262110 or visit nuffieldhealth.com/ exeterhospital to find out how you can choose to be treated by one of the UK’s best surgeons. You couldn’t be in better hands.

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

What if?

What if you lived in Devon and could look into the future? What if someone developed a very special kind of web site that was easy to access and put you in touch with what events are taking place in Devon - or better still that are going to take place in Devon. A web site you could access from your desktop, laptop, tablet or mobile phone?

Now wouldn’t that be useful?

What if you lived in Devon and wanted to promote a forthcoming event - for free? And who are ‘you’? You are the small local organisations promoting an event. You are a business promoting an offer. Maybe you’re a part of the tourism industry or a church promoting the use of its hall for meetings. Whoever you are, if you are Devon-based and promoting an event to Devon you are welcome to use South Devon Coast & Country magazine's very own ‘hub’!

And did we mention that it was free?

southdevonhub .co.uk Different spokes for different folks South Devon Coast & Country

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February & March 2013

Forthcoming Events promote your Events free on: southdevonhub .co.uk

Festivals DARTMOUTH COMEDY FESTIVAL 5 to 9 Mar - 7th Dartmouth Comedy Festival, Dartmouth. LAUGH OUT LOUD FESTIVAL Until 10 Feb - Exeter’s exciting comedy festival with stand-up, slapstick and open mic, various venues. WINTER WARMED Until 16 Feb - Beckett’s Endgame as centrepiece of three-week drama festival, The Bike Shed Theatre, Exeter, 7.30pm.

Are you Fed up with missing local events?

VIBRAPHONIC FESTIVAL '13 8 to 23 Mar - It is an annual occasion with events taking place across Exeter around twenty venues including the Exeter Phoenix, the Cavern, Barnfield, and more. Various venues across Exeter.

Dartington DEVON BAROQUE, “BACH CANTATAS” 17 Feb - Four well known cantatas, with soloists and small choir accompanied by the orchestra including wind and brass, 3.00pm. CLAY TO WHEEL 28 Feb - The Earth Talks. Using clay from various sources around the South Hams, Richenda will demonstrate making a bowl, a jug and a cup on the wheel. During the talk she will also discuss the significance of traditional craft in our times, Schumacher College, 8.00pm.

LOCAL EVENTS

Wish you could tap into a resource that has really comprehensive WHAT'S ON information for the region?

PAW 2013 WARGAMES SHOW 2 & 3 Feb - Kitto Centre, Plymouth.

The solution is here, it's called:

RECITALS AT THE FLAVEL 6,7,11,12,14 Feb - The Flavel Theatre, Dartmouth.

southdevonhub .co.uk

WINTER ICE RINK Until 24 Feb - Armada Way, Plymouth.

SOUTH DEVON

SOUTH DEVON COASTAL MARATHON 9 Feb - Start Time 9:00am.

MOTHER'S DAY OPEN AFTERNOON 10 Mar - Poltimore, Exeter, 12.00-16.00pm.

MUD AND SWEAT MOUNTAIN BIKE EVENT 10 Feb - South Brent, South Devon.

EASTER EGG TRAIL 29 Mar - Home Farm, Bovey Tracey, Newton Abbot.

FAMILY GHOST TOURS 15 & 22 Feb - Dartmouth Castle, Dartmouth at 6.00pm & 7.30pm (1hr). BUILDING BOLT HOLES FOR BIRDS & BEES 19 Feb - Spring into action and build your own bird box or bee motel to house this year’s flying families, Home Farm, Parke, Newton Abbot, 11.00am to 3.00pm. SCARECROW SPECTACULAR 22 Feb - Sculpt your very own scarecrow in whatever fashion you want. Some materials will be supplied, but bring in anything that might be useful, Home Farm, Peake, Bovey Tracey. Meet in the walled garden. CATHEDRA 900 Mar - Creative Workshops during March, there will be six, one day creative workshops for young people from the local area, staged in the Cathedral’s Chapter House. The six workshops will be for Creative Writing, Digital Photography, Digital Video, Performance, Voice Coaching and Drawing. Exeter Cathedral. THE ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTURE 6 Mar - The museum re-opens with the exhibition, Newton Abbot Town Museum.

Coast & Country

MAIN EVENTS POWDERHAM WEDDING SHOW 23 to 24 Mar - A wealth of wedding supplies to cater to every budget, large or small. Explore the variety, be inspired by novel ideas, ask questions and sample the goods on offer, Powderham Castle.

Comedy TOO SCARED TO LEAVE THE HOUSE 2 Feb - Stand-up comic Lee Hurst encourages you to go out and laugh in the face of doom, Corn Exchange, Exeter, 7.30pm. ALEX HORNE 8 Feb - Seven Years in the Bathroom, Exeter Corn Exchange. HAL CRUTTENDEN 10 Feb, Edge Comedy Club, Exeter Phoenix. CHRIS ADDISON 24 Feb - Manchester based comedian, Northcott Theatre, Exeter.

February & March 2013

Forthcoming Events WIT TANK 24 Feb - Three-man sketch group, Exeter Phoenix. JETHRO 25 Feb - Corn Exchange, Exeter. MICKY FLANAGAN 6 to 8 Mar - The Back in the Game tour, Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth, 8.00pm. MILTON JONES ON THE ROAD TOUR 8 Mar - All killer, no thriller from surreal one-liner machine, Princess Theatre, Torquay, 7.30pm. MILTON JONES, ON THE ROAD TOUR 9 Mar - London born comedian, Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth, 8.00pm. EDGE COMEDY CLUB 10 Mar - Carl Donnelly, Rob Deering¸ Northcott Theatre, Exeter. 7.30pm.

Childrens' Entertainment EXTREME IMAGINATION 16 to 23 Feb - Exeter Children's Literature 2013. Venues throughout the city including Exeter Northcott and the Bike Shed Theatre. Exeter tel 01392 285970. MADAGASCAR LIVE 21 to 24 Feb - first arena tour of Dreamworks Live. Westpoint Arena, Exeter.

EASTER FAMILY FUN TRAIL 29 Mar to 14 Apr - Search for the clues around the grounds to be rewarded with a special Easter prize, Dartmouth Castle, 10.00am to 5.00pm.

Fairs DEVON ANTIQUES & COLLECTORS FAIR 23 Feb - Inside stands at ground floor level in the one exhibition hall, plus space on hard standings outside the hall. Matford Centre, Exeter. MADE WITH LOVE

CHINESE STATE CIRCUS 11 to 12 Mar - The show features acts which include a remarkable display of human juggling, the superb swinging poles, the sensational contortionist and dynamic hoop divers with their amazing acrobatics, Plymouth Pavilions. MOTHER AFRICA 21 Mar - This circus is an experiential feast for the senses; an opportunity to be touched by the many varied and rich cultures that Africa has to offer, Princess Theatre, Torquay, 7.30pm.

Ballet ALADDIN 6 to 9 Mar - Birmingham Royal Ballet, Theatre Royal/ Drum, Plymouth. ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND 28 Mar, - Presented by Opera House, in three acts, The Flavel, Dartmouth.

CRIKEY - IT’S A SPRING FLING! 2 Mar - Local vintage sellers and handmade artists, with entertainment from Company B, Thistle Hotel, Exeter.

SLEEPING BEAUTY 15 Mar - A new Verdi production by English Touring Company, Vienna Festival Ballet, Princess Theatre, Torquay.

EXETER RECORD & CD FAIR 16 Mar - The region’s biggest record fair, and a must for music lovers collectors and bargain hunters, St. Georges Hall, Exeter. ALL THINGA VINTAGE & LOVELY FAIR 16 Mar - Over 40 Vintage inspired stalls including clothes, furniture, homeware, crockery and lots more. The Palace Hotel, Babbacombe Road, Torquay. Contact 01803 213837 for more details. Over 16 £1.50 entry fee.

COSI FAN TUTTE 19 to 20 Feb - English Touring Company, A cynical gentleman’s conviction that women cannot be faithful sets in motion a chain of deceit, disguise and desire in the most perfect ensemble opera ever written, Northcott Theatre, Exeter 7.30pm.

MOSCOW STATE CIRCUS 3 Mar - The most famous circus in the world is transformed by combining the contemporary and the classical in a way never before witnessed, Princess Theatre, Torquay, 7.30pm.

ALFIE BOE 31 Mar - The nation’s tenor, South Pavilions, Plymouth.

23 Feb - At least 50 stalls of unique crafts and gifts with vintage cars, a high tea and a charity prize draw for Balloons of Exeter, Exeter Castle, 10am till 4pm.

Opera

Moscow State Circus at Princess Theatre

THE MAGIC OF MOZART 23 Mar - Opera Boheme is made up of young professional soloists based in London, The Flavel, Dartmouth.

EUGENE ONEGIN 20 Feb - Presented by Royal Opera House, The Flavel, Dartmouth.

Theatrical DIRTY DANCING Until 9 Feb - Dirty Dancing is an unprecedented live experience, exploding with heart-pounding music, passionate romance and sensationally sexy dancing, Theatre Royal, Plymouth. THE CLASSIC ROCK SHOW 2nd Feb - Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth. GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS 5 Feb - World Records HQ fuses together the world of Science to take you on a journey of all that is; Guinness World Records. The audience will be invited to participate in live record attempts. Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth, 7.00pm. MISS JULIE 9 to 16 Feb - The Little Theatre Company, Torquay.

BOOGIE NIGHTS 13 Feb - The 70s musical, Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth. DOLLY PARTON'S 9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL 18 to 23 Feb - A hilarious story of friendship, gossip and revenge, Princess Theatre, Torquay 7.30pm. EXTREME IMAGINATION 19 to 23 Feb - An exploration of childhood - nostalgic, elegiac, painful, wry and terrifying, Age over 12, Cygnet New Theatre, Exeter 7.30pm to 8.45pm. MIRACLE THEATRE PRESENT FRANKENSTEIN 20 Feb - Exeter Phoenix, Exeter, 7.00pm. THE RISE AND FALL OF LITTLE VOICE 25 Feb to 2 Mar - A night of music, divas and romance, written and directed by Jim Cartwright, Princess Theatre, Torquay, 7.30pm. ANTON & ERIN GO TO HOLLYWOOD 27 Feb - The UK's favourite dancing duo Anton Du Beke and Erin Boag are back with a dazzling new show, featuring sassy tunes, sensational choreography and sparkling costumes. Hollywood at its best! Plymouth Pavilions, 7.30pm. HAIRY BIKERS 7 Mar - Larger than live, with tales of their culinary expeditions, some hairraising, many ridiculous and all of them shared in the Bikers’ inimitable style, Princess Theatre, Torquay, 7.30pm. RELATIVELY SPEAKING 9 to 16 Mar - A production of Alan Bennett's play, The Little Theatre Company, Torquay. NEVER FORGET-ROWCROFT HOSPICE 16 Mar - Variety show, Babbacombe Theatre, 7.30pm. THAT'LL BE THE DAY 31 Mar - Rock ‘n’ roll spectacular with a fantastic line up of hits from the 1950s, 60s and 70s, Princess Theatre, Torquay.

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE 12 to 16 Feb - Musical, Northcott Theatre, Exeter.

CARMEN 13 Mar - Opera International, starring international mezzo soprano Nadia Stoianova, whose portrayal of Carmen has won rapturous reviews, this is the story of a bewitching gypsy girl whose tantalising beauty lures a soldier to desertion and ultimately leads to her own murder, Princess Theatre, Torquay. 7.30pm.

CONTINUED OVERLEAF

Saturday 16th March 11am-3pm Sunday 17th March 11am-3pm

SIMON BOCCANEGRA 21 & 23 Mar - A new Verdi production by English Touring Company, Northcott Theatre, Exeter 7.30pm. THE SIEGE OF CALAIS 22 Mar - L'assedio di Calais by English Touring Company, Northcott Theatre, Exeter 7.30pm.

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

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Coast & Country

We can help you unlock your

February & March 2013

Forthcoming Events Classical

Collectors

Concerts CLARINET CLASSICS 1 Feb - With Timothy Orpen, clarinet and John Reid, piano, have played together for over 10 years, The Flavel, Dartmouth. GYPSY WATKINS 2 Feb - Performing some of the greatest opera arias, popular power ballads, and spiritual music, Exeter Cathedral, 7.30pm. TWO-DAY SPRING WORKSHOP 2 & 3 Mar - Dartington Community Choir, conductor Jonathan Watts, Great Hall, Dartington. 20TH INTERNATIONAL CONCERT SERIES 7 Mar - Plymouth City Museum & Art Gallery, Drake Circus, 1.00pm. PLYMOUTH AREA POLICE CHOIR 8 Mar - St Mary’s Church, Totnes, 7.30pm. PLYMOUTH PHILHARMONIC CHOIR 17 Mar - The Guildhall, Royal Parade, Plymouth, 7.30pm. WORKSHOP 2013 21 Mar - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Plymouth Pavilions.

COOPER ANTIQUES & FINE ART FAIR 22 to 24 Feb - Powderham Castle, Exeter.

FARMERS &

Country Markets ASHBURTON LOCAL PRODUCE MARKET Thursday/Friday/Saturday, 9am - 3pm, Tucker’s Yard. BOVEY TRACEY FARMERS' MARKET Alternate Saturdays, Union Square. BRIXHAM FARMER’S MARKET Second Sunday of each month, Fore St, Brixham. 10.00am to 4.00pm. BUCKFASTLEIGH FARMERS’ MARKET Thursdays, 9am-1pm. Town Hall. DARTMOUTH FARMERS’ MARKET 2nd Saturday of the month, 9am - 1pm, Market Square. DAWLISH LOCAL PRODUCE MARKET 2nd Friday of the month, 9am - 2pm, Piazza on the lawn. IVYBRIDGE COUNTRY MARKET Fridays, 8.30am-11.30am, The Scout Hut, St Leonard’s Road.

KINGSBRIDGE COUNTRY MARKET Wednesdays, 8am-noon. Town Hall, Fore Street.

KINGSBRIDGE MARKET Town Hall Foyer, Fore Street. Wednesdays from 8.15am-12noon.

KINGSBRIDGE FARMERS’ MARKET 2nd & 3rd Saturdays of the month, 9am - 1pm, Town Square.

NEWTON ABBOT OUTDOOR MARKET The Market Square every Wednesday & Saturday 8am-4pm.

NEWTON ABBOT FARMERS’ MARKET Tuesdays, 9am-4pm, Courtenay Street.

TAVISTOCK MARKET The Pannier Market, Tavistock. Fridays from 9am-4pm.

TEIGNMOUTH LOCAL PRODUCE MARKET 3rd Saturday of the month, The Triangle. TOTNES GOOD FOOD SUNDAY 3rd Sunday, the Market Square.

MARKET DAYS BRIXHAM ARTS AND CRAFT MARKET Every Saturday under the old fish market, Brixham harbourside. DARTMOUTH MARKET Every Tuesday and Friday in the Market Square from Easter to October. EXMINSTER MARKET First Saturday every month, 9.30am12.30pm

TOTNES MARKET Fridays and Saturdays.

EXHIBITIONS GET FRESH Until 24 Feb - Designer-makers in the South West exhibit their new prints, furniture, textiles, glass, ceramics, sculpture, enamel, jewellery and silver, Riverside Mill, Bovey Tracey, 10am to 5.30pm. SKETCHBOOK DIARIES 22 - 24 Feb - With Jane Bowman. 3-Day Sketchbook workshop. Hazelwood House, Loddiswell. www.hazelwoodhouse.com

IVYBRIDGE MARKET The Scout Hut, St Leonard's Road, Ivybridge. Fridays. 8.30-11.30am.

The LasT sunday of every MonTh, 27Th Jan, 24Th feb & 31sT March

ArrAn AromAtics crAnks crAft GAllery DynAmic ADVentUres fooD shop fAshion & Jewellery GAllery Gifts & stAtionery GlAss GAllery BAzAAr kitchen shop my time toG 24 toy shop totnes Bookshop the hAVen spA VenUs cAfé & tAkeAwAy for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

IF YOUR VENUE HAS LIVE MUSIC

February & March 2013

get added to our events by emailing charlotte@prestige-media.co.uk

Live Music

Live Music Roundup GENERAL Thursdays - Craig & Steve’s Open Mic/Jam Night, Molloy’s, St Marychurch, Torquay, 9-11.15pm. 1 Feb - Out of the Box, duo with a good-time act covering all types of music, The King’s Arms, Kingsteignton, 9pm. 4 Feb - Simon Gee, one of the most popular guitarists/vocalists on the South West live music scene, Palace Hotel, Paignton, 8.30-11pm. 8 Feb - Dave Rich, one of the finest entertainers in the West Country, De Tracey’s, Bovey Tracey, 9pm. 13 Feb - Dave Rich, one of the finest entertainers in the West Country, The Huntsman Inn, Ide, 9pm. 16 Feb - The Penguins, well-known and classic rock and blues covers, Creeks End Inn, Kingsbridge, 9-11.30pm. 16 Feb - Rock The Night, rock/blues/ pop covers band, The Lansdowne, Dawlish, 10pm-12.30am. 22 Feb - Still Life, alternative and classic rock covers, The Jolly Farmer, Newton Abbot. 23 Feb - The Kaiser Chiefs, with their infectious enthusiasm and unique viewpoint this band are true originals, The Great Hall, Exeter University, 7pm. 23 Feb - Hot Candy, funky pop and rock with sassy female vocals, Spinning Wheel Inn, Paignton, 9pm. 23 Feb - The Dissemblers, guitar, bass and drums trio with something for everyone, Upton Social Club, Torquay, 9-11.45pm. 23 Feb - Quite Brazen, Devon’s hottest pop, rock and indie covers band, The Bell Inn, Bovey Tracey, 9pm-12 midnight. 23 Feb - Guilty Plea, 4-piece covers band playing anything from the Stones to the Kings of Leon, The Lansdowne, Dawlish, 9.30pm. 25 Feb - The Lock In: The Demon Barbers, street dance meets folk in the UK’s No 1 Folk and Hip-Hop Dance Extravaganza, Exeter Phoenix, 8pm. 1 Mar - Slamboree, Balkan music, circus and daredevil entertainers make for a mind-blowing show (over 18s only), Exeter Phoenix, 9.30pm. 2 Mar - Conspiracy, 4-piece pop and rock covers band, Spinning Wheel Inn, Paignton, 9.30pm-12midnight. 9 Mar - Last Orders, multi-generational 5-piece rock covers and originals,

Creeks End Inn, Kingsbridge, 9pm. 9 Mar - The Covers Brothers, acoustic/ electric rock and pop, The Dolphin Inn, Kenton, 9pm. 16 Mar - P R Dewhurst, Upton Social Club, Torquay, 9pm. 23 Mar - Joe Brown, slide guitarist who has never stopped working since his 60s heyday of Joe Brown & The Bruvvers, Palace Theatre, Torquay, 7.30pm. 30 Mar - Thick As Thieves, pop anthems band, Upton Social Club, Torquay, 9-11.30pm.

Friday 8 March 2013, 7.30pm. FAIRPORT CONVENTION EXETER CORN EXCHANGE www.fairportconvention.com

Fairport Convention, originators of the English folk-rock movement, play the Corn Exchange in March - and as always, they will ‘rouse the spirit of the earth and move the rolling sky’. Formed in 1967, in a house called “Fairport”, this is a group that has survived much tribulation and many changes - but original member Simon Nicol, guitar and lead vocals, is still there. Dave Pegg, bass and backing vocals, Chris Leslie, lead vocals and multi-instrumentalist, and Gerry Conway on drums and percussion complete today’s line-up. Way back in 1971 they gave us the first folk-rock opera, ‘Babbacombe Lee’ - the tale of the man they couldn’t hang - and turned the spotlight on South Devon. Tickets: £19. Corn Exchange, Market Street, Exeter EX1 1BW Tel: 01392 665938 www.exeter.gov.uk/cornexchange photo courtesy of: Fairport Convention

JAZZ Sundays (except second Sunday) - After Eight Jazz Club, bringing you jazz in all its forms, Bay Horse Inn, Totnes, 8.30-11pm. Wednesdays - Speakeasy Jazz Club, The Bancourt Hotel, Torquay, 8.3011pm. 7 Feb - City Steam Jazz Band, The Devon Arms, Torquay, 8.30-11pm. 4 Mar - City Steam Jazz Band, The Jolly Sailor, Teignmouth, 8.30-11pm. 15 Mar - Hamer & Isaacs Gypsy Jazz, Kings Arms, Kingsteignton, 9.30pm. 16 Mar - Jazz Morley, with a repertoire of classic soul, jazz and pop songs, self-accompanied on the piano, Barnfield Theatre (Exeter Arts), 7.30pm. 30 Mar - Hamer & Isaacs Gypsy Jazz, Bay Horse Inn, Totnes, 8pm.

FOLK ROOTS & ACOUSTIC Sundays - Singers’ Night, Folk on the Moor, Westward Inn, Lee Mill, 7.45pm. Wednesdays - Go Tell Alice, smooth jazz to funky folk, Albert Inn, Totnes, 7-10pm. First Thursday - Brixham Folk Club, resident live folk band playing electric acoustic folk & roots, The Ernie Lister Bar, Quayside Hotel, Brixham. 7.30pm. Last Thursday - Teignmouth Folk Club, folk music and songs in an informal and friendly setting, The Devon Arms Hotel, Teignmouth, 8.30pm. 2 Feb - Celine Dos Santos, acoustic covers and originals, Offshore bar and restaurant, Torquay, 9.30-11.30pm. 3 Feb - O’Hooley & Tidow, beautiful and poignant modern Chamber folk,

SOUTH DEVON

Folk On The Moor, Westward Inn, Lee Mill, 7.45pm. 7 Feb - Steve Tilston Trio, plus special guests Keith Warmington and Stuart Gordon, Studio Lounge, Totnes, 7.30pm. 17 Feb - Gerard & The Watchmen, rising stars of the UK’s alternative folk scene, Studio Lounge, Totnes, 7.30pm. 17 Feb - Jackie Oates, the sweetest voice in English folk, Folk On The Moor, Westward Inn, Lee Mill, 7.45pm. 23 Feb - Ducie, plus special guests, exciting new group with unique musical approach and Afro-Cuban percussion and double bass, Studio Lounge, Totnes, 7.30pm. 3 Mar - Tom McConville, The Newcastle Fiddle Player, Folk On The Moor, Westward Inn, Lee Mill, 7.45pm. 8 Mar - Phillip Henry & Hannah Martin, authentic haunting roots music, Brixham Folk Club, The Studio, Brixham Theatre, 7.30pm.

Coast & Country

8 Mar - Fairport Convention, Fake Thackery: the originators of British folk-rock, plus John Waterson’s tribute to Jake Thackery, Exeter Corn Exchange, 7.30pm. 17 Mar - Celine Dos Santos, acoustic covers and original, Pier Point, Torquay, 1.30-3.30pm. 17 Mar - Phillip Henry & Hannah Martin, authentic, haunting roots music from a first class duo, Folk On The Moor, Westward Inn, Lee Mill, 7.45pm.

BLUES 2 Feb - Extractor, 3-piece rock/blues, The Coach House, Paignton, 9-11pm. 9 Feb - The Swamp Hogs, rock ‘n; blues power trio, The Jolly Abbot, Newton Abbot, 9pm. 9 Feb - Pitchbend, hi-energy mix of rhythm ‘n’ blues, soul and rock, The Coach House, Paignton, 9.15pm.

Get your live music events listed now!

Friday 15 February 7.30pm LIZ LAWRENCE STUDIO LOUNGE TOTNES

Take advantage of unlimited event promotion. Go to the website now and register.

southdevonhub .co.uk

photo courtesy of: Asia Werbel Photography

photo courtesy of: Joe Clarke Photography

www.lizlawrencemusic.com

Liz Lawrence takes in Totnes on her 2013 UK Tour, which coincides with the release of her debut album, ‘Bedroom Hero’. The title song, full of hope, fantasy and desires, has already been released on iTunes so you may already have heard her soaring vocals and gentle acoustic guitar. Now you can see her mesmerizing and feisty stage show when she returns to perform in her beloved Devon, where she studied art and started writing songs. Tickets: £8 (£6 in advance). Studio Lounge, Scope Complex, Wills Road, Totnes TQ9 5XN Tel: 01803 862267 www.studioloungetotnes.com Email: info@totnesfm.co.uk

Friday 1 March, 9.30pm SLAMBOREE, EXETER PHOENIX www.slamboree.com

Slamboree is a collective of musicians, circus performers, daredevils and entertainers presenting a show that will blow your mind. With bass-driven beats, a live orchestra, guitars, percussion, loops, visuals, brass, accordion, pyrotechnics and more, these guys fuse breakbeat, dubstep, drum and bass, dub, techno and electro to present a show like no other. Think Balkan music meets circus and full-on rave, and you’re getting there. On 1 March they are at Exeter Phoenix, and the show - tickets £13 - is standing only. Exeter Phoenix, Bradninch Place, Exeter EX4 3LS Tel: 01392 667080. www.exeterphoenix.org.uk Email: contact@slamboree.com

photo courtesy of: Soul Funktion

Thursday 21 March, 9pm SOUL FUNKTION, SPINNING WHEEL INN, PAIGNTON www.soulfunktion.co.uk

Disclaimer - you are advised that before attending any of the events listed in the "Forthcoming Events" and 'Live Music Roundup' section of this magazine, you should contact the venue in advance to double check that the dates and times are correct.

Soul Funktion, a hi-energy Torbay-based band, delivers the big sound of classic soul legends such as James Brown and Otis Redding and can diversify into the softer tunes of contemporary and pop . The 10-piece line up includes male and female vocalists, a 3-piece horn section and a solid backline of guitar, bass, drums and keyboard. Though the band concentrates on private functions, you have the chance to see them at the Spinning Wheel Inn, Paignton, during two gigs in February and March. Tel: 07786 242524. Spinning Wheel Inn, Paignton Tel: 01803 555000 www.spinningwheelinn.co.uk

FEATURED VENUE 28 Feb - Soul Funktion, with the big sound of classic soul, Spinning Wheel Inn, Paignton, 9pm. 16 Mar - 4 Rock’s Sake, 4-piece classic rock/blues, The Coach House, Paignton, 9pm. 2 Mar - Bad Knees Blues Band, mature players who know how to rock, The Old Smithy, Ivybridge, 9pm. 21 Mar - Soul Funktion, with the big sound of classic soul, Spinning Wheel Inn, Paignton, 9pm.

ROCK/H-METAL 9 Mar - Jukebox Fury, rock covers, The Jolly Abbot, Newton Abbot, 9pm. 23 Mar - The Mighty Camel Toe, playing rock the way it should be played, The Lansdowne, Dawlish, 9pm.

BAY HORSE INN, TOTNES "The little pub with a big garden and lots of live music"

The Bay Horse Inn at Totnes has gained an enviable reputation for its real ales, locally sourced food and dedication to live music. This is a pub that is traditional without being old-fashioned, CAMRA-listed and, with its superb walled garden, very family-friendly. Live Music is offered three or more evenings a week, usually between 8.30pm and 11pm - every Sunday (except the second Sunday) the After Eight Club brings you jazz in all its forms. There is regular folk music, with Bluegrass sessions on that second Sunday. Wednesdays see traditional Singing Sessions exploring British folk, and on Thursdays it’s Eli’s Open Session. On the first and third Monday there is a traditional Open Session at which players and singers are welcome, “We’re here to make music,” they say. And make music they do!

Hamer & Isaacs Gypsy Swing Band will be playing their volcanic swinging gypsy jazz here on Easter Saturday, 30th March. Influenced by Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club of France, the inspirational Rich Hamer on guitar complements the swing of violin virtuoso Mel Brindle, the rhythm provided by guitar veteran Julian Isaacs and double bassist Howard Kahn, all offset by the soaring flaming vocals of Rosie Corlett. To get a taste of what they are like, you can listen to some tracks on their website. Knowing that gypsy jazz fans just love them, they have released their second album, ‘Live & Lovely’, which can be purchased at their shows for just £10.

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

photo courtesy of: Hamer & Isaacs Gypsy Swing Band

Bay Horse Inn, Totnes Tel: 01803 862088 www.bayhorsetotnes.com Email: thebayhorse@btinternet.com www.hamerandisaacs.com Rich Hamer: Tel: 07765 378561 Email: richhamerguitarist@gmail.com

Forthcoming Exhibitions February & March 2013

George Donald - 'Northern Boundaries' - Artmill Gallery

Annabel Fairfax - 'Teapot and White Orchids' - Gloss Gallery

Duncan Palmar - 'The Perfect Place, Polzeath' - Mayne Gallery

GALLERIES COME FLY WITH ME Until 1 Feb - Solo Exhibition of surreal oil paintings by Miranda Benzies. Exploring the highs, lows and transformations in urban and rural life. Ariel Centre , Totnes.

ROSIE BURNS Until 2 Feb - Make Space Prolific and Versatile - artist Rosie Burns will transform the space: from a blank, white walled gallery to a working painting and printmaking studio. (closed on Sundays) Harbour House, Kingsbridge.

BURNT OUT Until 17 Feb - Helen Snell uses a sculptural installation using laser cutting and water jet cutting in a range of diverse materials looking at exploration, imperialism and the human and environmental cost of war, Devon Guild of Craftsmen.

DAVID HOCKNEY AND THE PRERAPHAELITES

HOWARD BIRCHMORE Feb & Mar - a comprehensive set of work, Mayne Gallery, Kingsbridge.

Until mid Mar - Madryn Framing Studios, Combeinteignhead.

MICHAEL SANDERS

FINE ART COLLECTION Until 30 Mar - the exhibition will include city views, 20th century Devon landscapes and striking portraits. Gallery 5, RAMM, Exeter.

WINTER COLLECTION Until 18 Apr - An all female line up featuring the work of Sarah Downham, Diana Miller, Dina Clement, Susan Brown. Avon Mill Garden Centre, Loddiswell.

ATMOSPHERE Until May (Fri & Sats) - Jason will be holding exhibitions of his original work. Jason Liosatos Gallery, Totnes.

MATISSE LITHOGRAPHS Until 23 Feb - Gloss Gallery, Exeter.

GET FRESH Until 24 Feb - new designer-makers from the South West. New interventions in print, furniture, textiles, glass, ceramics, sculpture, enamel, jewellery and silver. Devon Guild of Craftsmen.

Feb - New exhibition of paint on canvas using oil washes and glazes producing dynamic skies and glistening seas, D'art Gallery, Dartmouth.

DUNCAN PALMAR Feb & Mar - An established and highly sort after artist elsewhere in the country, but this is the first showing in the South Hams. Mayne Gallery, Kingsbridge.

SALCOMBE IN WINTER Feb & Mar - Exhibition showing original paintings both large and small by Lucy Pratt and Greg Ramsden SWAc. Coves Quay Gallery, Salcombe.

TheMarleGallery

CAROLE FLETCHER Until 18 Feb - Beauty Neglect and Decay, The Flavel, Dartmouth.

P. S. A. 2 Feb to 2 Mar - the first show of 2013. Artmill Gallery, Plymouth.

contemporary fine art & ceramics

EXHIBITIONS

www.marinehouseatbeer.co.uk

Before They Were Famous

Exhibition

5 to 23 Feb - An exhibition of art from exceptional young local artists under the age of 19: talent of the future.

Michael Morgan

2 Mar - Launch of his definitive book, “The Road Less Travelled” plus release of six special limited edition prints, 11am to 5.30pm.

Angus Rutherford & Emma Forrester

5 to 30 Mar - Emma’s paintings are thoughtful and delicate still lives. Angus takes the eye on a rhythmic journey through landscapes with his pen and ink drawings.

Mike Bernard Solo Show

16 to 29 Mar - 45 new works, Italian and West Country coastal scenes. Contact the gallery for a catalogue on: 01297 625257

SOUTH DEVON

Victoria Place, Axminster, Devon, EX13 5NQ art@themarlegallery.co.uk 01297 639970 www.themarlegallery.co.uk

Coast & Country

ANIMATED EXETER: ART YOU GREW UP WITH 16 Feb to 2 Mar - Preview: Friday 15th Feb, 5-8pm, Gloss Gallery, Exeter.

PRIMARY COLOURS 16 Feb to 6 Mar - Annual exhibition of art work from local primary schools floor to ceiling colour to brighten the gloomy days of winter! This show is, for many, the highlight of the gallery year at Harbour House, Kingsbridge.

ELEN CLAIRE WILLIAMS 18 Feb to 4 Mar - Ways with Landscape, The Flavel, Dartmouth.

THE EASTER SHOW Mar - Bringing together Chris Forsey's striking images from the villages of South Hams, Marie Mills canvases depicting hedgerow flowers in subtle colours, Steve Shaw's retains a playful and humorous edge to his detailed artwork and a wonderful polar bear raku-fired ceramics by the reknowned wildlife sculptor Nick Mackman, D'art Gallery, Darmouth.

TIM ANDREWS 2 to 31 Mar - Internationally acclaimed potter Tim Andrews exhibits his smokefired and raku ceramics at 45 Southside Gallery, Plymouth Barbican.

GEORGE DONALD AND DEREK MENARY 9 Mar to 6 Apr - Artmill Gallery, Plymouth.

Ford Madox Brown - 'The Hayfield' - Madryn Framing Studio

Mary Fedden - 'Poppies' - Frames and Boxes

BRITISH NAIVE ARTISTS 9 Mar to 4 May - Preview: Friday 8th March, 5-8pm, Gloss Gallery, Exeter.

CHRISTIAN PARKES 18 Mar to 1 Apr - The Flavel, Dartmouth.

Greg Ramsden SWAc - 'Memory of the River' - Coves Quay Gallery.

EXETER OPEN STUDIOS 22 to 24 Mar - Launch: Thursday 21st Mar, Gloss Gallery, Exeter.

THERESA SHAW 23 Mar to 1 Apr - Contemporary floral artist - will be exhibiting and painting live both weekends in her vibrant and fluid style, Haddon Galleries, Torquay.

Christian Parkes - 'Bridging Heaven and Earth' The Flavel, Dartmouth

MICHAEL HILL AND CLARK NICOLE 13 Apr to 11 May - Artmill Gallery, Plymouth.

THE LENS AND THE EASEL 17 to 26 Apr - An exhibition of Michael Carterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s photographic portraits of artist members of the South West Academy. Each classically formal black & white portrait will be paired with a chosen work by each artist. The Ariel Centre, King Edward VI Community College, Totnes.

Theresa Shaw - 'Delphiniums' - Haddon Galleries

Chekirov - ArtFrame Gallery

ONE MAN SHOW 18 May to 8 Jun - Connor McIntyre (actor, film and TV) currently taking his M. A. at Plymouth university, Artmill Gallery, Plymouth.

Fine Art Trade Guild Award Winning Guild Commended Picture Framer and Gallery

Artists Mary Feddon, Jennifer Brerton, Kerry Darlington, Jenni Murphy.

15 Glanvilles Mill, Ivybridge t. 01752 698119 www.lime-square.co.uk

ST IVES GROUP

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Mark Coombs

Local, National and International Originals and Signed Limited Editions, Ceramics and Art Clocks.

February

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15 Jun to 13 Jul - Artmill Gallery, Plymouth.

Photographs of the local area.

Open Monday - Saturday 9am - 5.30pm

Alyson Howard - 'Klimtfleur' - Lime Square

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

EVENT LISTINGS by

southdevonhub.co.uk

Are you interested in art? Now you can follow your local art scene online

Art Art Blog http://dolbycusdin.tumblr.com

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re the official coordinators for EXETER OPEN STUDIOS which we are delivering in Spring 2013 - with a series of exciting pop-up exhibitions and film screenings across the city. Please make contact if you wish to be involved. Tel. 07786 326298 dolbycusdin@gmail.com

Lucinda Cusdin It really is amazing that this region has such a great range of Art Galleries, many exhibiting leading names from the art world. Now, you can follow your local art scene in South Devon, Exeter and Plymouth by going to the southdevonhub.co.uk website. Additionally, if you're an emerging artist, established artist or art gallery, you can get your events listed on the website totally free of charge. We can also pull your art events into both the East Devon and South Devon COAST & COUNTRY magazines.

Polly Dolby

Making the Arts Accessible! Art is very subjective. It can be a personal experience or a shared delight. We have the luxury to engage in it but also step back. What we cannot deny is its presence: visual culture surrounds us, we absorb it subconsciously, it is propaganda, and is undeniably pertinent and persuasive in how we function as a society.

and Peninsula Arts in Plymouth also offer a diverse and important programme of events which aim to engage all. Not only have we become far more conscious of the space in which we function, physically making it accessible to audiences. Access lies at the heart of our programmes and audience participation.

Saturday Art Club at Spacex

The 20th century has seen the rise of a bombastic cultural giant: the public gallery. Tate, the Barbican, Saatchi - these galleries amongst many have become brands, synonymous with modern thought on aesthetic and how we perceive art. We trust them, venerate them, embrace them and rightly so for they have paved the way for a rich cultural heritage and programme of exhibitions which are vastly important. Here in Devon we can see how the cultural landscape has changed. In Exeter alone, 2012 saw the grand re-opening of the exquisite RAMM. Spacex, the Pheonix

Blog

Robert the Rat at RAMM- helping young visitors to engage with the history of Exeter!

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

RAMM have got it just right. Never too young to appreciate a museum, their learning programme involves early years with fun days and special activities, right through to adults with a regular programme of lectures, symposia and curator-led tours. The public can engage with the museum onsite and offsiteboth digitally and physically and RAMM are conscious to offer touch tours for visually impaired visitors as well as BSL tours for deaf audiences. We can get our hands dirty in artist-led workshops or engage with the exhibitions intellectually with high quality talks delivered by experts in their field. The museum and gallery has become a place where people interact, socialise and share their experience. It is fun, engaging, resourceful and exciting. Above all it is accessible and allencompassing. No longer do we look to the museum as a stuffy institution. It has become our favourite cultural playground.

Art Galleries

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elcome to South Devon Coast & Country's eating out section which we hope will give you inspiration. After all, everyone enjoys a meal out - it's a real treat. We're so lucky here in the Southwest with many lovely countryside and coastal eateries - enjoy!

Eating Out

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Q - I know I've got to get my business in front of potential customers so I can get new business, but I have a limited budget? A - It's very simple, you need each advert you purchase to gain maximum exposure for your company. This high-quality glossy, magazine potentially gives your business up to 2 months of exposure for the cost of a single advert which makes it a highly cost-effective and viable proposition. Because we carry much interesting content, people really love the magazine and keep it on their coffee table. All our magazines additionally go online and are free to access by anyone, so you gain extra exposure for no cost. Speak to Nigel 01395 513383 or Vivienne on 01395 568025

Q - How can I be sure that this magazine goes to the 445+ high quality outlets across South Devon that are listed in the magazine?

EXCITING NEW CAFE OPENS SOON AT LODDISWELL, WITH STUNNING RIVER VALLEY VIEWS Family business Aune Valley Meat are shortly to open their new cafe facility for Easter 2013. Richard and Sue Winzer are a husband and wife team that run Aune Valley Meat with their children Amy, Emily and Richard junior. Sue says "the family are all really excited about this new venture!". The cafe is superbly placed, looking out over the river Avon valley. As well as the new indoor cafe, there's also a new veranda where you can sit outside and enjoy the lovely rural views. On the menu will be light lunches, home-made cakes, teas and coffees. Sue tells me that they're having a super duper Italian San Remo coffee machine installed and they'll be using high quality hand-roasted coffee beans to

ensure that customers will get a 'real coffee' experience. This new cafe opens for Easter, and the cafe has plenty of parking onsite, so it's a stress-free option. I'm sure that we all wish them well with this new venture, I for one will be popping in for a coffee - Editor. LODDISWELL WALK A Loddiswell - river Avon valley walk will appear in our June 2013 issue, don't miss it as the whole walk is mapped out for you and the walk will feature spectacular photography of this beautiful area. If you need to pick up a copy, Aune Valley Meat stock the South Devon Coast & Country magazine.

The truly lovely river Avon at Loddiswell

A - There's no point having a regional magazine for South Devon if it's not very widely available. See our Google map which shows each and every outlet - we don't make false claims, magazines are delivered to each outlet by our own team. It's so accurate, we can even tell you how many copies each outlet receives per issue!

Don't miss our June issue which features an illustrated walk for Loddiswell

Google map of outlets: http://bit.ly/KIC0vE

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

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Dreamy Storage Ideas Having recently read a study suggesting that a clean and tidy room may help sleeping, it got me thinking about how we can all go about this eﬀectively and easily.

Above - Nordic House - vintage style zinc trunks set of three £130

our bedroom is more than just the room that happens to house your bed - it is your personal area for sleeping, and a proper sleep environment is essential for a good night’s rest. Whilst growing up we were forever being told to tidy our rooms, never truly understanding what the point of this was when it was only all going to be pulled out again in an hour or so. “A tidy room makes a tidy mind” my Mother would tell me, and it was years until I finally understood just how right she was. Of course, it is only natural to collect things over the years, from clothes and shoes, to those annoyingly sentimental objects you just can`t throw away. I am a great believer in being ruthless when it comes to my annual clear out and

John Lewis - Chopin Sofa Bed in Silver £1400

We’re lucky in Devon to have really skilled, high-end cabinet makers that can make pretty much anything you need for your storage solution SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

directory Y HOME & INTERIORS Z

if I need to think about whether or not to keep an item then out it goes. However, even if you are as ruthless as I am with the spring cleaning, it is inevitable that over time you will need more and more storage to house these acquired pieces. If you are lucky enough to have a large room to work with, then you have plenty of storage options. Fitted wardrobes are an ideal way of using space efficiently; and you can buy a wide range of these to suit your area on a budget from companies such as Ikea. Alternatively, if money is not an issue, then bespoke storage pieces from fitted wardrobes to a chest of drawers are available from many companies who specialise in bespoke storage. We’re lucky in Devon to have some really skilled, high-end cabinet makers that can make pretty much anything you need for your storage solution. With space to fill in a vast bedroom, other aesthetically pleasing objects can be placed around, which can serve a double purpose, to look nice within the scheme but predominately to store things in them. Blanket boxes are a wonderful piece of furniture to have at the end of any bed. They provide a very large area for storage as well as being somewhere to sit down. Many companies offer a range of bespoke wooden finishes and fabric choices for the top of the blanket box in order to fit in with any given room palette. Laura Ashley produce some of these, my personal choice being The Devon which retails at £250. Other fashionable items such as trunks stacked up in the corner of a room or used as bedside tables can act as wonderfully looking storage furniture. I especially adore the set of three zinc vintage style trunks from Nordic House which come at an extremely reasonable price of £130 for the set. If space is an issue for you, then you may have to become a little more resourceful and clever with how you choose to extend your range of storage equipment. For a child’s bedroom, the most obvious thing to do would be to have a raised bed, such as the lovely Ashton Loft Bed from John Lewis which retails at £699. This will instantly leave you with a good bit of space to re-use for either toy storage, a study area or even a place to sit down in. Other sleeping options are to use a sofa bed or a day bed in a small

Dulwich Day Bed £995 from The White Company room. These are fantastic as they only take up a fraction of the space but can be used multi-functionally. Ikea have a nice range of day beds starting at around £260, some with

I am a great believer in being ruthless when it comes to my annual clear out, and if I need to think about whether or not to keep an item then out it goes!

hampers but are treated with a very contemporary wash of grey with leather straps. These retail at £65 per box. They also have many other sets of three storage boxes with different designs and colour ways which retail at £36 per set and are perfect to hold accessories such as jewellery, scarves or belts. Remember to always make use of any over head space such as on top of free standing closets and shelves, but be careful not to cram things up there as it can look messy. Storage boxes look attractive and also hide any clutter you would not otherwise wish to see. Of course, there are plenty of other options for cheaper storage solutions, such as he modular wall frame “Algot” range units from Ikea, which are simply hung on to

the wall. There are lots of different sections for this range, from a simple frame with baskets attached, retailing at £37, to a large fitting with rod and shoe organiser which can reach up to £170. Personally I feel that although storage is obtained through this system, it is all still visible to the eye, which ends up defeating half of the object. Although it uses it up less space than a fully built piece of furniture, you still aren’t left with that clutter free and relaxing sleeping space which we all so apparently need. With plenty of ideas and products available for a clearer and “tidy mind”, we certainly have no excuses left for not getting that fully good night’s rest! Mandi Crump (www.mandyjane.co.uk)

wonderful storage underneath them already built into the design, three in one! John Lewis have some beautiful sofa beds such as the Chopin sofa bed in silver which retails at £1400. Having a small room can get rather stressful when trying to keep it tidy all the time, but as long as you are organised and have enough containers to work with, there are ways to ensure that you use each and every available space in your room. Divan beds are superb for storing things underneath, but if you have decided to go for a wooden or metal bed, then all is not lost, as there are some really lovely under bed storage options out there. Laura Ashley hold an exquisite range of wicker baskets and under bed storage, which look a little like large picnic for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

Ashton High Sleeper in white finish £699 John Lewis

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Bradburys. Be inspired.

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A good choice for complete peace of mind... Coast & Country PRESS AD NEW.indd 1

11/05/2012 14:15

The Story so Far..

’ve had to take a Devoness test to prove to Ms Grudge of ADDLED (Association for the Deportation of Downright Lazy Eccentrics out of Devon) that I’m a fit and proper person to live in the Glorious County. Though failing miserably I was granted leave to remain because I was writing articles for a posh magazine - provided these always said good things about my beloved adopted county. In my book this amounts to censorship, up with which I will not put - normally. But principles can be bent on occasion and this one seems as good as any. However, at the end of the day whether I continue my ramblings in print depends on the reaction of you, the great Devonshire public.

So I remain poised at the bar of Ye Olde Pig & Trampoline, one fi nger quivering over the typewriter keys awaiting The Editor’s thumb up or down. If it goes the wrong way it’s deportation for me, but of course you’ll never know that because you won’t be reading this. On the other hand if the fickle digit of fate points skyward then I can regale you with more tales of Flatbeare life, such as the Ghost Bus, how the ‘Pig’ and The Ferret & Codpiece, the other late lamented village hostelry, got their names and why Ms Grudge bears one. Some time later... Let joy be unbridled - he say yeah! I shall eat again, but fi rst another pint of Rottingtum’s Extra Strong Licence Remover to oil the old typing fi ngers. Some of you may wonder why I use a typewriter. Fact is, computers and I have a difficult relationship. I had one once, about seven years ago when I was led to believe they were a necessity in the high tech 21st century, not just for writing but communication. Friends moaned that I was not on email; eventually I caved in. Sure, it was useful but I became totally sick of emails from so-called friends with a note saying ‘gee, you’ll love this

one’. They’d obviously forwarded it to all their contacts in the mistaken (I hope) belief that failure to do so would result in their garden being ravaged by locusts, or whatever other disaster might be hinted at by the deviser of this alleged joke/funny story. Those were relatively harmless ones but I remember receiving badly worded and spelled ones from complete strangers telling me I’d won a lottery I’d never entered, so could they have my bank details. Most people could see through those but I’m told by computer literate friends that the hackers are nowadays much more sophisticated; the email from a friend who’s been mugged abroad and urgently needs 2000 dollars or whatever to get home may appear quite genuine and is apparently the work of an English speaker. Now that the hackers seem to be able to take over your address book to send out all sorts of nasty beasties which seize up the works I’m glad I decided to revert to nature. Computers can be useful for helpful suggestions regarding spelling and grammar but some of the latter would have sent my old English teacher into a state of apoplexy. For example, a simple sentence like ‘I’ll get you a glass of water... drink it’ produced two alternative suggestions: ‘I’ll get you a glass of water... drinks it’ or ‘I’ll get you glasses of water... drink it’. The name of a well known South African ex-President was queried by the spell checker and ‘Nelson Mandible’ suggested. Once the spellchecker suggested ‘rescaling’ as an alternative to ‘descaling’ a kettle. An interesting suggestion: should I collect all the unwanted scale and glue it back on? Then there’s the expense involved in preventing alien infiltration. It was comforting to know I had a personal firewall, outbreak alert, intrusion detection, antivirus, antispam, privacy control, parental control, for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

auto protect, email scanning, ad blocking, pop-up blocking, an allowed list and a blocked list. I’d say my computer was relatively better protected than my house. Messages such as ‘End of Media encountered while backing up to non-removable media’ were enough to bring on the urge to smash that screen, throw the printer out of the window and take up a quill pen, dip it in the inkpot and write on old fashioned parchment. But fortunately better brains than mine had invented the typewriter back in the 19th century. I would worry about the future if I wasn’t getting on a bit. There’s so much pressure to try to get people to do everything online and it’s becoming very difficult to exist without a mobile phone (or just ‘phone’ as I believe young people call it now). I was pleased to read recently that a coffee shop owner was intending to refuse service to anyone trying to order whilst chatting on a phone at the same time. I heartily approve; it’s difficult enough ordering a ‘double expresso with an extra shot of something’ these days without a third party being involved. On the positive side of technological advancement I’d place the invention of the telephone answering machine. Even better is the caller recognition thing that helps you decide not to pick it up. Oh dear, I’m sounding like a grumpy old man, which is perhaps not surprising. So, on a more cheerful note I’ll tell you how the Ferret & Codpiece came by its name. Well, once upon a time... Oops, sorry, my typewriter ribbons trapped. Could take some time to untangle it, so I’d better have a pint of Old Paintstripper while I sort it out and maybe tell you the story next time, if there is one. Make sure you let The Editor know what you think.

directory Y HOME & INTERIORSZ

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Coast & Country

A point of view!

Nelson’s Column IT’S WHAT RAVENS DO to keep out the cold. They fluff up. It’s also a jolly useful ploy to attract a mate - so read on.

Mrs Osborne by John Collier c.1920s, oil on canvas © Plymouth City Council (Museums and Archives)

Photo: John E Marriott at the RAMM Exhibition

All fluffed-up and nowhere to go?

Women in Art

It isn’t only ravens who are beginning to fluff

in the forthcoming Year of the Snake - a year

Plymouth City Museum & Art Gallery,

themselves up in readiness for the mating

in which fortune smiles favourably on the

Drake Circus (Tel: 01752 304774).

season.

sophisticates amongst us.

An impressive selection of works from

With the first day of Chinese New Year

Cultural Menu for Two

portray or were created by women.The

knocking at the door on the 6th and

So why not take that first step into this

exhibition spans Renaissance times to the

Valentine’s Day just around the corner on

particular Chinese New Year by organising,

modern day. It features muses, models,

the 14th of February, this - according to

say, a lunch date - with the partner of your

portraits and 20th century ceramics.

those versed in these things - is an especially

choice of course - at a Chinese restaurant

Artists on display include John Waterhouse,

auspicious time for we romantically inclined

(Devon has 57!)

Edgar Degas, Beryl Cook, Prunella Clough

the permanent art collections that either

Devonians to get out there and start putting

and Rose Hilton. Ceramics by Clarice Cliff,

out a puff of any pent-up pheromones left over

And thence to one or other of two free

Dorothy Doughty and Lucie Rie plus a

from last Spring.

exhibitions awaiting your delectation and

portrait of Nancy Astor being introduced

delight at opposite ends of our county.

to parliament are also on show until 2nd

For this, in the Chinese calendar, is the Year of the Snake, a particularly auspicious year for romance, amorous liaisons of all kinds

November 2013. Oh, yes, and don’t forget to wish your waiter “Gong Hee Fot Choy!”

and, dare we say it, courtship itself. Just be aware of the fact that 2013 is also a

Wildlife photographer of the year

year in which there is a need to tread lightly. Subtle schemers and shrewd dealers will be

(Exhibition sponsored by Veolia Environnement)

rewarded rather than headlong plungers

Open 2nd February to 2nd June 2013.

whilst gambling and wild speculation in

RAMM, Exeter (Tel: 01392 265858).

the Year of the Snake are what Confucius*

This is where our picture of that wonderful

deemed a no-no.

fluffed-up raven came from.

This is also the year in which to expunge

The exhibition showcases the winning images

the grunge in your wardrobe in exchange

from all 11 categories of the competition

for the chic. Out, too, should go that boxed-

including underwater worlds, urban wildlife,

set of Carry On films whilst you make a

plants and more. This is the world’s most

conscious but above all elegant return to

prestigious annual wildlife photography

theatre and the arts of all kinds, along with

competition. It is currently in its 48th year

classical music. All these things you should

and is open to amateur and professional

find rewarding as part of your bucket-list

photographers alike. for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

*Devon’s top-four Confucius sayings for Chinese Year of the Snake “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” “If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake.” “Silence is a true friend who never betrays.” “If your plan is for one year, plant rice. If your plan is for ten years, plant trees. If your plan is for one hundred years, educate children.” JOHN FISHER

Harford

St Petrock's church

Beautiful Devonshire countryside and churches make a truly exquisite combination. My visit to this church at Harford was on one of those spring days when two colours predominate, the almost electric blue of the sky and luminous green of foliage. St Petrock's church stands beside the old road running from Plympton to South Brent, which in part runs alongside the cascading river Erme (note - we've scheduled to run a river Erme walk in a future issue). Christian worship has continued at this site since Saxon times and it is thought that there was a church here at the time of the Norman conquest. There are records showing that the first known Rector was instituted in 1262. The church now dates mainly from the 15th and early 16th century. Being built of moorland granite, apparently it was difficult to work and as a result, some of the elaborate decoration you could expect are absent from this edifice, although in my opinion, less is definitely more in this instance. In the churchyard you can see the old Spurrells Cross, a very old waymarking cross. It was moved in 1909 from near a gateway in the lane. I'm sure you agree that we all owe a great debt of gratitude to church congregations up and down Devon that maintain these beautiful churches. If you visit, don't forget to contribute in the box. - Editor

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

Tower View

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

The Exeter Mail Coach attacked by a lion, painting after James Pollard

(Image courtesy Woolley & Wallis Salisbury Salerooms)

The year the lion attacked the Exeter coach DEVON’S GRIM WEATHER LAST YEAR WAS NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT HAPPENED HEREABOUTS IN 1816 - writes John Fisher

THEY CALLED IT “the year without a summer” and it was also the origin of the expression “eighteen hundred and frozen-to-death”, and with good cause. That darkest of years was 1816, made even more memorable perhaps in the West of England that autumn when the Exeter Mail Coach was attacked by a starving lion. But we are rushing ahead of ourselves. It began in the year before, some 8,000 miles from Devon when Mount Tambora, a 13,000 foot Indonesian volcano erupted on 10th April, 1815. It killed tens of thousands of people in the immediate vicinity and unleashed climatic changes around the world which brought about the deaths of many thousands more.

To this day, it stands as the world’s worst recorded volcanic disaster with 93 cubic miles of ash being spewed into the upper atmosphere within a few minutes, reducing the height of the mountain by 4,000 feet. The ash clouds circled the globe in the upper atmosphere for two years, bringing un-seasonal snows, floods and droughts to the northern hemisphere - followed by famines, pestilence and disease. All of these touched Devon whilst some of the extraordinary sunsets triggered by the dust have been recorded in Turner’s most memorable paintings. It rained in the West of England throughout that summer on 142 SOUTH DEVON

recorded days out of 153. There was snow on Dartmoor in June and lakes and ponds froze on high ground. Autumn came in cold, bleak and cheerless. This then was the background to that one particular night in that extraordinary year - a cloudy but bitterly cold evening when the Exeter Mail Coach was attacked by a lion - or to be more precise, a lioness. This was the crack Quicksilver coach which had left Devonport before the sun rose that chill Sunday morning of 20th October, 1816, bound for London at a steady ten to twelve miles an hour, via South Devon, Exeter, Salisbury and Andover, picking up and dropping off mails along the way.

Coast & Country

Apart from the mails themselves slim leather satchels kept securely in the boot - the coach was lightloaded. People had come and gone as it rumbled across Devon, and by the time it reached Exeter there were just two people on board, both of them men and both seated inside. The only two souls braving the elements that short autumn day and long, bitterly cold night, were the coachman and the guard. The guard’s duty was to stay with the coach from start to fi nish of the journey: the coachman on the other hand travelled 50 miles in one direction and then changed places with the coach coming in the opposite direction by stepping across

the gap between the two. Thus these men were experts on the roads they travelled and knew each twist and turn like the backs of their hands. The coach’s lamps were lit at Shaftesbury as the sun set: two double-wicked road lamps to the front, showing that they were an approaching Mail, two double-wicked lanterns on either side which dimly illuminated the ground for a yard or so to left and right of the passenger doors, and a small covered light positioned just in front of the guard. On that particular night this was one, Joseph Pike, who sat at the very back of the coach facing a wide wooden box with a hinged lid. As the only Post Office employee aboard the mail coach, Pike wore an official uniform of a black hat with a gold band and a scarlet coat with blue lapels and gold braid. All this beneath a greatcoat and scarf of his own purchase. His guard’s light served three purposes. Firstly it enabled him to read “London time” from the sealed chronometer charged to his keeping by the Post Office and kept in a pouch slung around his neck: secondly it allowed him to sort the mail bags for each drop by reading their engraved brass labels and thirdly, it kept his hands warm. At the bottom of the box were two pistols and a blunderbuss. Although 1785 was the last time a Mail coach had been held up by a highwayman, Act of Parliament decreed that they be kept fully loaded at all times. The coachman meanwhile, whose name has been lost in the mists of time, steered his team of four horses through the inky blackness of the night, his way lit periodically through cloud by the occasional glimpse of a star and a two-day old new moon. But what we do know of him was common to all coachmen of that period. Seated on a sprung board at the front right of the coach where he took the brunt of the weather, he probably took a tipple or two along the road at each stop to keep out the cold. Tradition has it that he should wear a soft, widebrimmed hat, sometimes held on by a long scarf which also wrapped twice round his neck before disappearing beneath a full-length overcoat. He wore calf-length leather boots and kept a short, sharp knife in the top of the right-hand boot which was used for cutting traces should a horse fall or become entangled in its harness. He held the reins for all four horses in his left hand and as a consequence

their approach. The coachman could already see the yard at the front of the inn lit by lanterns and the small team of waiting ostlers who would change the team and get them on their way again.

Royal Mail commemorated the lion attack with a stamp issue in 1984

‘had a left-bicep like a cannon ball’. His right hand held the whip. The Quicksilver’s change of horses before their encounter with the lioness had been, ominously enough, at the still-renowned Red Lion Inn at Salisbury where our nameless driver had come in earlier, driving the Devonport-bound coach. One Thomas Trollope (brother of Anthony Trollope) wrote of one of these rapid changeovers of Mail coaches. “It was a pretty sight to see the changing of the horses. There stood the fresh team, two on the off side, two on the near side, and the coach was drawn up with the utmost exactitude between them. Four ostlers jump to the splinter-bars and loose the traces; the reins have already been thrown down. The driver retains his seat, and, within the minute (more than once, within fifty seconds by the watch) the coach is again on its onward journey”. The lead horse on this occasion we know was called Pomegranate, formerly a race horse which had according to Exeter’s Flying Post (which reported the story just three days later) developed such a bad temper in the racing stables that he had been sold to the owner of the Red Lion, a Mr. Weekes. After the change of horses the Quicksilver soon left the fl ickering yellow lights of the ancient city behind and headed out into the night again and across Salisbury Plain in the direction of Andover. Next scheduled stop the Winterslow Hut (later to become The Pheasant Inn) a lonely halt then, as now, and “in the middle of nowhere” as that renowned man of letters, William Hazlitt later called it in the diary he kept when he lodged there. As they crested the hill seven miles or so further along what is nowadays the old A30 and began the long fi nal descent towards the inn, Joseph Pike reached for his post horn, his “three feet of tin” and gave it the regulatory three double blasts to warn them of

It was at this moment that Pike, looking down to his right, spied what he took to be “a large calf” running alongside the coach and shouted a warning to the coachman. He in turn delivered a warning crack of his whip to whatever it was that was causing such distress to his “cattle”. It was now, as the Quicksilver pulled into the yard, that all hell broke loose. The lioness bounded forward and leaped onto the back of the offside leader, throwing its front paws round the neck of the terrified beast as it sank in tooth and claw. The horse, in its agony, reared and half fell to the right, almost toppling the coach, its front hooves lashing out in an attempt to free itself from the harness and deal with its attacker in the only way it could.

the door of the fi rst room they could fi nd. The brave coachman shouted to Pike for the gun and began to clamber down from the wildly rocking coach, reaching for his short-bladed knife. Pike made a grab for the loaded blunderbuss in the box at his feet, and leaped from his seat. As his feet touched the ground and he straightened he turned to see a wildfaced man pointing a loaded pistol at his forehead. “For God’s sake don’t kill her!” the man shouted. It was his lioness, the man screamed. She had escaped from his travelling menagerie and had cost him £500 and was “as tame as a rabbit” if he and his men could only get to her. At this point two men who had come running up with the owner released a mastiff dog which leapt onto the lioness and sank its teeth into one of its hind legs. The lioness now turned its attention to the dog and seems to have quickly dispatched the poor creature, killing it outright and dragging it off into the darkness

TEAMWORK: Guard and Coachman as portrayed by 19th century illustrator Fred Barnard for Charles Dickens’ Pickwick Papers Amid the terrified screams of the rearing horses and the shouts of the people in the yard both coachman and guard now saw the attacker as a lion. As the ostlers ran for their lives, the two coach passengers leapt from its nearside door, fled into the inn, ran up the staircase immediately in front of them and locked and barricaded

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

towards a wooden barn or granary (which is still there) towards the rear of the inn. What then followed was subsequently reported in the Salisbury and Winchester Journal: continued overleaf

“Her owner and his assistants, after a short deliberation, followed her upon their hands and knees, with lighted candles, and having placed a sack on the ground near her, they made her lie down upon it; they then tied her four legs and passed a cord round her mouth, which they secured; in this state they drew her out from under the granary, upon the sack, and then she was lifted and carried by six men into her den in the caravan. To the astonishment of everyone who beheld this part of the transaction (which lasted about a quarter of an hour), the lioness lay as quietly

at Bartholomew Fair in 1825 where the “lioness who attacked the Exeter mail coach” (and now 15 years of age) was still being exhibited, admission one penny. Takings by the menagerie for that particular three-day fair were £90. Of poor old Pomegranate, who had been foaled in 1809, there was no sign.

Disasters update MOUNT TAMBORA is still active with lava f lows and its dome continues to build inside the crater. The last eruption, in 1967, was “small and not explosive”.

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The root cause of the climatic changes - Mount Tambora, a 13,000 foot Indonesian volcano erupted on 10th April, 1815. It killed tens of thousands of people in the immediate vicinity as a lamb during her removal to the caravan; but when she was there she became sensible of the restraints she was under, and her rage was excessive till the cords which annoyed her were loosened”. Did those two extraordinary men take a tot of brandy to settle their nerves after such an encounter? You can bet they did, but it is testimony to the importance they attached to their duty and the efficiency of the postal service at the time that the whole incident only delayed the mail coach 45 minutes before it changed teams completely, re-instated the two fleeing passengers from their locked their upper room and continued on their route to London.

Allʼs well that ends well POMEGRANATE recovered and was bought from Mr. Weekes by the enterprising menagerie owner, George Ballard, who exhibited the pair of animals at Salisbury Fair that same week - and many other fairs over the following years. “Ballard's Grand Collection of Wild Beasts" was still doing the rounds

In 1826, 10 years after the lion attack, the Quicksilver was still making the same run which, leaving Piccadilly at 8 p.m., arrived at Exeter at 12.34 next day; time, sixteen hours, thirty-four minutes. Going on to Devonport, it arrived at that place at 5.14 p.m., or twentyone hours, fourteen minutes from London. There were no fewer than twenty-three changes of horse over the 216 miles and four changes of coachman.

Q - How can I be sure that this magazine goes to the 445+ high quality outlets across South Devon that are listed in the magazine? A - There's no point having a regional magazine for South Devon if it's not very widely available. See our Google map which shows each and every outlet - we don't make false claims, magazines are delivered to each outlet by our own team. It's so accurate, we can even tell you how many copies each outlet receives per issue! Google map of outlets: http://bit.ly/KIC0vE

Cost of the cheapest single fare? Four old pennies per mile, plus 20 old shillings in tips to the coachmen (virtually obligatory) and guard. Total cost in today’s money, about £4.60, plus the cost of food and drink on the brief stopovers. You can still travel by coach from London to Plymouth of course, but in this day and age the carrier will more than likely be National Express, who now has the lion’s share of the route, whilst the single fare, via Exeter is £29.90.

Adam Gribble

Master Thatcher Over 20 years experience

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John Fisher SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

The Sunflower Trust Brightening Children's Futures - Naturally!

Life Matters Balancing the stresses of work and living with health and relaxation

Life Matters

Because the Sunflower Programme works with the principles of nature, it

Editor - Averil Quinain

does not provide a quick fix to learning,

coaching@gmail.com

emotional or behavioural difficulties. On

tel: 01395 513383

average, a programme lasts between 6

Sunflower Trust

07891 447710 Averil is a Personal Life Coach

and 9 months. However, the contact time with the practitioner during those

ever before has there been such

behaviour are simply indicators that

months is probably no more than 7 - 8

a need in Devon for support that

a child is in some way out of balance.

hours.

makes a difference to local children

Because the human being is a complex

for the Princes Trust as a

with learning, emotional and behavioural

system, when there is imbalance in

With Sunflower practitioners based in

mentor for young people, and

difficulties. The Sunflower Trust is a

one part of the system, there will be

the area, the Sunflower Programme

for Oxfam as a school speaker.

charity with a firm presence in the area

imbalance elsewhere. For that reason,

is on the doorstep for families living

and Business Development Coach. She works voluntarily

With a passion for inspired and responsible living, she also runs an organic natural

that provides that vital support.

in Devon. Not only is the programme geographically accessible; it is also

The Sunflower Trust, set up 14 years

financially accessible to families who

ago, raises awareness of the benefits

might not otherwise be able to afford

that the Sunflower Programme can

such a powerful programme. Thanks

provide for children with learning,

to the support of the Sunflower Trust,

emotional and behavioural challenges;

bursary funding is now available to

as well as to provide bursary assisted

children from families in financial

places on the programme for children

hardship. In this day and age, it is

Do you have anything interesting to tell us about?

from families in financial hardship.

heart-warming to know that powerful

The programme is a completely natural,

Sunflower practitioners are trained to

We re particulary

integrated approach to health and

use a variety of core skills including

wellbeing that recognises the unique

osteopathy/ chiropractic, Applied

For more information about the

make-up of every child. The programme

Kinesiology, NLP (Neuro-Linguistic

Sunflower Programme, the Sunflower

is based on the understanding that when

programming) and have nutritional

Trust or bursary funding, please visit

children are balanced, integrated and

expertise to restore balance on a

www.sunflowertrust.com or call the

well, they perform better at school, have

number of different levels. Having such

Trust direct on 0845 054 7509.

more positive relationships with friends,

a powerful range of skills, the Sunflower

family and teachers and feel happier

practitioner is able to tailor-make a

The Sunflower Trust

in themselves.

Underperformance

Sunflower Programme to match the

10 Guildford Park Road, Guildford,

at school, emotional issues and poor

child’s specific needs. Over the course

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of the programme, the patient will work

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with the practitioner to restore balance

www.sunflowertrust.com

at the physical, chemical, neurological,

enquiries@sunflowertrust.com

remedy business.

Averil

trained at the internationally renowned CoachInc.com and is a member of the ICE.

keen to hear

from local chariti es and voluntary organisations abo ut the good work they carry out in the community. We d also like to

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practitioners in the area about their services.

South Devon

treatments and

programmes are available to all, not just

emotional and nutritional levels.

Notice regarding Cool Recovery Gwen Butcher, author of ‘Once upon a time….’ (Coast & Country Dec2012-Jan 2013) is a carer and founder member of Cool Recovery mental health charity as well as being a mum, and former nurse. She has travelled widely as a UN wife. She lives in South Hams. Now approaching her 80s, Gwen remains dedicated to the carer’s cause. In 2001 Gwen collaborated in writing a document entitled

to those who can afford them.

‘Recovery for Carers’, widely circulated throughout the mental health networks in UK and overseas. She continues to write articles and attend conferences to draw attention to the carer’s perspective in mental health and recovery.

Cool Recovery

01803 299511 nfo@coolrecovery.org.uk www.coolrecovery.org.uk

For more information about local mental health networks and family support services, please contact:

Claudia Benzies Manager

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

Do you have an interesting life story to tell? If so, contact Nigel Jones so we can include it in the magazine call 01395 513383

Alan Rapkins

The detail work on Alan's models is staggering. Alan's Royal Navy background fuelled his passion for model ship building. Alan lives in Devon with his wife Irene.

Modelmaking Excellence with Alan Rapkins

odelling both ships and aircraft has always been of great interest to me but my real love is painting. I have been painting and drawing ever since I can remember. I am self taught, learning from other painters and books. I travelled for thirty one years in the Royal Navy, at a time when we had bases all over the world, Bermuda, South Africa, Ceylon as it then was, Singapore and Hong Kong. This gave me the golden opportunity to paint in many different countries and occasionally sell my work. The last major incident in which I was involved was the Falklands and on my return I was commissioned to paint a scene depicting the bomb attack on H.M.S Intrepid while at anchor in San Carlos Water. This was presented to the Commodore onboard at the time, and printed for sale in the Naval Museum.

Alan's model of The Bounty, which we'll examine in greater detail in a future issue. One of Alan's fine paintings of Painters in Watercolour and also The Royal Society of Marine Artists and the Submarine Museum Gosport, who commissioned me to do a series of paintings depicting actions in which “Submariners”, were awarded the VC, these remain on display in the Museum. I was lucky enough to be recognised by John Soloman of “Soloman and Whitehead fine art printers. They printed some of my work and also put on an exhibition for me with the Fine Art Trade Guild, Ebury St London.

Painting is about enjoyment and satisfaction, although there are times when what you expected to emerge from the picture in your head does not match up to the picture on paper or canvas.

I have undertaken illustration work for ship builders and designers, but have now settled down to exhibiting locally, accepting commissions as they come along, producing cards and generally pleasing myself.

Exhibiting is essential to get ones work seen, also to meet other artists and see how they handle different subjects. I have exhibited at the Mall Gallery in London with the Institute

South Devon Coast & Country

First Rate 100 Gun Ship 1700-1705 This particular model is of a type

supports her masts. Her 'running'

I had to carve myself, however

others again adapted from my box

rather than an exact replica

rigging, that which carries her

the small figures on the rails

of Arabs to look like Apostles. The

of a specific ship. However it

yards and sails has, so far, not

came from a small box of cheap

coat of arms was found in a tin box

represents with considerable

been added.

plastic Arabs from an Airfix desert

of bits in an old junk shop. Lastly,

accuracy a first rate or 100 gun

I learned a great deal in the

scene, they were trimmed and

one very come-in-handy item for

ship of around 1700-1705, at a

making of this model. Mainly

shaped to fit. Much of the heavily

the modeller are old box wood

scale of 1:96. she's still unfinished.

improvisations and the utilisation

decorated Strake running the

rulers. This is a beautiful wood,

The planking below the waterline

of ordinary everyday materials

entire length of the ship and

very difficult to find anywhere else

is omitted intentionally to show

and objects. This applies to all

the gunport surrounds were cut

these days. Ideal for carving and

the construction of the frames

models and a box of “come in

from embossed gold wallpaper,

making wooden rigging blocks.

as with the original Navy Board

handy”, items soon grows. Take

the “Stern Gallery”, caused many

Keep an eye open for them in junk

models. However she only carries

the "Beak Head", which carries

hours of trial and error. Again

shops and car boot sales.

her 'standing' rigging, that which

the figurehead of a lion, which

some of the figures are carved,

Alan's First Rate 100 Gun Ship in all its glory. The bare planking was originally omitted in preparation for Navy Board examination.

A Celebration of Life in South Devon

ARTWORK BY DARRYL JONES

Nearly through the worst of the winter weather? by Tony Jackson

By long country tradition, February is deemed the bleakest month of the year. Winter is still dragging its heels and only a white sprinkling of snowdrops and the first crocus and primrose contain the certain promise of spring in the drier, dustier days of March. Then, the first green leaves with the promise of summer, uncurl in hedgerows and trees. As I write this column, the near monsoon-like conditions which have assailed us through November and December have at last disappeared in favour of drier, brighter weather in the New Year. However, for bird life it has been a lean and hungry winter. A mass movement of birds from Europe, including f ieldfares, redwings and bramblings, made their way to Britain in the mistaken belief that our countryside would provide richer pickings of berries and seeds than the European wintering grounds. However, the dreadful wet summer proved disastrous for hedgerow fruit and even acorns and beechmast were scarce. The result has been a limited supply of food for native birds, never mind incomers from overseas. In November waxwings from Scandinavia invaded this country in large numbers seeking wild fruit and berries but soon moved on when they found the harvest had failed.

However, over-winter supplementary feeding during the “hungry gap” to late March is an option which is now available to farmers through Stewardship schemes and could be a life-saver for desperate farmland birds this year. Under the scheme famers can be paid to provide additional grain during this period, either by spreading it on farm tracks or close to existing areas of over-wintered stubbles. In addition, feed hoppers, such as those used on game shoots, can also be employed to dispense grain. Our weather is, as we all know only too well, increasingly fickle. February is by tradition a month of rain, while March can be dry and dusty. Equally, both may see the countryside under a blanket of snow. Under these conditions, garden bird feeding is a vital life-line and should not be neglected. Today, there is a thriving industry catering for the needs of garden birds, with an extensive range of foods such as sunflower hearts, fat balls, flaked maize, millet, nyjer seeds and live

Harsh frosts are what we usually expect in February

or dried mealworms. Peanuts are very popular too, as they contain fat, but should always be bought from a reliable source to make sure they do not harbour a toxin (aflatoxin) which is poisonous to birds. The garden owner can do so much towards sustaining not only bird life, but also insects, on which birds depend and flowers and fruit rely on for pollination. Now is the time to plan your garden for the months ahead, bearing in mind the needs of wild life, so much of which increasingly is dependent on gardens to survive. Whilst nesting-boxes can be erected at any time of the year, February is the optimum month. Today, there is a wide variety of boxes available, many of which are over-decorated, over-elaborate and absurdly expensive. A plain, simple box with the appropriate sized entry hole for a particular species is all that is required. It should be sited so that the entrance is not facing prevailing winds, which means in a northerly or south-easterly direction in our part of the world, and there should be a clear flight path to the box. Boxes should also be sited where predators have cannot invade them -walls are often better in this respect than trees. Weasels, grey squirrels, rats and greater spotted woodpeckers are the prime enemies. Also try and place a box in a position where you can observe the action. This, after all is more than half the pleasure of a bird box!

DIARY DATES: Feb 11: Walk of about 5 miles for snowdrops. Guide Ian Waite. Meet Otterhead Lakes car park (ST224741) Feb 14: Winter wildlife walk, Plymouth, in the Saltram National Trust estate. Contact Celia Ralph on 01752 892555. Feb 19: Guided bird watching with Ian Waite 9am -11am. £12.50 per person. 01297 20326. March 13: Dormice in Devon. Illustrated talk at Bovey Tracey. Meet at RC Church hall, Ashburton Rd. 7.30-9.30 pm. March 23: Walk in Holyford Woods for signs of spring with Mick Lock. 10.00 to 13,00. Meet Seaton Tower layby. 01297 551556. March 30: Rockpool ramble at Wembury. Meet at Marine Centre 12.30. More info at www.wemburymarinecentre. org

Hanneke Coats-Hoorn

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

Nelson’s

Parting Shot... China’. One large parish alone had a mileage of

HIPPOS FROLICKED in the warm shallow waters which once covered Devon

hedges that would have stretched in a straight line from Land’s End to Edinburgh and are therefore a marvellous subject for study”. But it was Dr. Max Hooper of Nature Conservancy who developed a system for dating hedges - which you may wish to try on a hedge near you. It’s simple, and it adds a new element to a family walk. First pace out a length of chosen hedgerow, Thirty to fifty paces should provide sufficient information to date it to within 50 years. Walk along its length counting the number of different species of shrubs you can find. Hooper’s hypothesis (tried and tested in many other parts of the UK) being that for every Photo - Cloudzilla

different species we can reckon a hundred years of life: so that a hedgerow that produces

Remains of the day

ten different species could be reckoned to be 1,000 years old - plus or minus 50 years.

WE DEVONIANS have been around for a long time, witness the palaeolithic caves in South Devon, the circles of stone huts we later lived in up on Dartmoor and the Honiton

Devon County Council estimates that “Devon

by-pass, once a happy hunting ground for hippos.

was relatively unscathed compared to other counties (England lost more than 155,000

Their mortal remains (now lodged decently in

into the ocean from whence we came. But don’t

miles of hedgerows before they began to be

Honiton Museum) were found in 1965 beneath

panic, it’s only isostatic adjustment and there

protected) and can be proud of the fact that

what is now the west-bound carriageway of the

are probably several more millions of years of

A30 Honiton by-pass and are proof, if proof

‘tilt and slide’ to be undergone before any of us

were needed, that there is nothing new about

it has more hedgerows than any other county - an impressive 33,000 miles”.

needs to move to higher ground.

climate change happening in Devon. We’ve been through a lot together in more We are getting wetter again, we are getting

modern times too, since this part of the

warmer again and at this end of the island we

country was given the Celtic name of

continue to sink a little more each year back

Dumnonia meaning ‘people of the land’. Which suggests that we may have become farmers sooner than

Photo courtesy China Tourism

some of our hunter-gatherer neighbours. Certainly some of the field systems hereabouts are more than 5,000 years old, and are worth hanging on to, reckoned Devon’s own Professor W. G. Hoskins, who wrote in his classic English Landscapes:-

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? Kents Cavern, Torquay, has produced some of the oldest evidence of human activity in Britain with the discovery of stone tools used 500,000 years ago by Homo erectus each one an ancient Devonian 498,000 years before the county even got its name.

“Back in 1844 a surveyor calculated that the hedges in ten parishes in east Devon THAT DEVON SURVEYOR GOT IT WRONG: China’s Great Wall is 8,850 (5,500 miles) long!

JOHN FISHER

totalled 1,651 miles - ‘half as long again as the Great Wall of

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SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

Dawlish from the air - Nigel Jones 2012

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image courtesy Westcountry Studies Library

A pastoral scene at Shaldon with Teignmouth in the distance

Those were the days

The beginnings of Devon’s big day out recalled by John Fisher

OME RAIN OR SHINE has

to explore, refreshment marquees

their sixpences for admission. No

makers, hay rakers, Morris men and

become something of a

and beer and cider tents to be enjoyed,

money saving family admissions in

cider brewers, jobbing thatchers, rat

those days.

catchers, clock sellers and carvers of

Mr. Oldrieve’s small wooden shed

all of them determined to make the most of what this extraordinary and

mantra for the indomitable

a luncheon tent for the more well-to-

Devon County Show, England’s first

do and half-way between this and

and foremost three-day agricultural

what the plan shows as the ‘Second

event.

things wonderful and wooden; and

Class Refreshment Tent’ a police

must have been a crowded place.

station: and all of this set within

As the administrative hub of the

historic day had to offer. Here, for

Now all but a few months short of

a broad acreage of trackless wet

two-day event it housed his staff of

the first time in living memory was

its 142nd birthday the Show is still

grassland.

admissions overseers, officials of all

a place where town and country met,

guaranteed to spring back into life

kinds, judges and recording clerks

mingled, exhibited, traded, socialised,

each year, as fresh as the first daisy

together with a small but vital flock

exchanged news, ideas and gossip -

of fleet-footed boys who waited his

and enjoyed themselves.

of summer, and has done (two world wars permitting) since Thursday, 23rd May 1872. Today our population has increased tenfold with more than a million of us now living in what our forebears back in 1872 more often than not called ‘Devonshire’ but remarkably there are still more than 10,000 farms of all kinds in the county, most of them family-owned.

H ARVEST LORE:

“Eat before you’re hungry, drink before you’re dry, whet your scythe before it wants and you’ll mow as well as I!”

The shape of things to come. Braving the terrible May weather

beck and call outside the back door, steaming quietly in the fine rain but

People flocked to the Show from far

ever ready to run messages to and

and wide to become part of what was

fro across the vast expanse of wet

to become the biggest day out in the

grass, keeping the events on time

county’s calendar. They made it by

and in order.

rail, on foot and by public wagonette. They trotted along on horseback,

For rain and mud there was a-plenty

bounced along in dog-carts, sped

on this first day of the first-ever Show,

along in landaus or rocked and rolled

whilst Devon - never-daunted then or

along in well-sprung closed carriages;

since by a drop of weather on a Show

they came from the four corners of

day - braved the elements beneath

the county in their thousands, many

bowlers, brollies and waxed cloaks or

taking a day to get there, staying over

topcoats, coming early and staying

for a night with family or friends or

Like a railway signalman in his box,

late to meet friends and neighbours

taking a lodging at one of Exeter’s

in 1872, some 25,000 of those

the Show secretary - a Mr Lewis

on the outskirts of the county’s

many boarding houses and then

old Devonians made their way to

John Oldrieve, from Totnes - had

capital city.

taking a day to get back again along

Mount Radford, Exeter for the two

his office erected with a commanding

day ‘exhibition’ as the first show was

view of the showground’s single

Here one could rub elbows with

called.

entrance.

Livestock was led or

villagers, townspeople, city types,

First stop at the exhibition on

driven to the right of his view whilst

fa r m i ng fol k , la nded gent r y,

such a chilly day might well have

the county’s as yet unmade roads.

In addition to the 500 cattle, horse

the admissions-paying public was

wheelwrights and ploughwrights,

been the public conveniences: yet

and livestock entries, there were, like

channelled to the left where man,

g u n sm it h s

bl ack sm it h s ,

although “Gentlemen” is clearly

today, stalls of every shape and kind

woman and child alike, each paid

engineers and basket weavers, cheese

marked on the plan displayed at the

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

a nd

entrance, together with “Rough

final glimpse of the Show, with the

Men” behind the horse lines and

bagpipe version of the National

close to the cattle pens and working

Anthem mingling with the lowing

folk’s dining area, there is no sign

of the cattle in the background and

of similar conveniences for the

the good folk of Devon wending

ladies although they undoubtedly

their wet, weary ways through the

existed. Perhaps this would have

gathering dusk, back to a hot tub

been thought immodest in an age

by their firesides perhaps and a

of bustles and crinolines and left

memorable place in the history of

off the map accordingly.

the county.

Aside from the horse and cattle

Footnote: On the following Monday,

arenas - both then and now the

But whilst many of today’s Show

set men’s feet a-tapping and ladies’

main centres of attraction - were

visitors have a fair understanding of

hearts a-flutter.

hoardings that had been used in the

May 27th all the timber and

eight ‘avenues’ of exhibits to enthral

the use of chemicals and man-made

the crowds, with no fewer than five

fertilisers in food production, here in

They were the pipes and drums of

hammer on the site. Total net profit

of them reserved for ‘purveyors

1872, with the word ‘organic’ never

the 42nd Highland Regiment of Foot:

for the two-day event, £534.14.2d.

of implements’. In contrast to the

so much as a glimmer in anybody’s

average height of the famous kilted

In the same week the minutes of

Show’s construction went under the

thousand yards or so of avenues in

green eye, was an entire avenue

regiment was some 6 feet whilst the

the Devon County Agricultural

1872, today’s Show has more than

devoted exclusively to ‘seeds and

total cost of a two day’s hire for the

Association (DCA A) show that

three and a quarter miles of exhibits.

manure’!

band, including refreshments for the

planning followed immediately for

pipe major and his men a bargain at

1873, a five-day affair this time which was held at Plymouth.

With scythes and sickles on the

And if the bracing smells of the

£51 and some change. The sight was

wane and new-fangled threshing

countryside had given them an

so inspiring that it sent the reporter

and mowing machines on the way

appetite, who was to stop those

from the Western Morning News

in, these verdant walkways might

who could afford it from at enjoying

back to his office to chew the end

place at its permanent showground

have provided some kind of life-

a break in the ‘luncheon tent’

of his pencil until he was inspired

at Westpoint, outside Exeter on

changing event for a farmer looking

(licensed to a Mr. Gifford of Exeter)

to write of the kilties ‘their knees

Thursday-Saturday 16th-18th May.

to improve his lot or one of his

strategically located at the end of the

so clean so strong, so bare’. Which

labourers given this first glimpse

avenue designed to whet the appetite

seems as good a place as any for this

of the shape of things to come.

of those looking for new ‘carriages

Although the internal combustion

and wagons’?

engine and the first motor cars were still a generation away, steam was

Next door the 400 invited guests of

king here and stationary traction

the President - the Duke of Somerset

engines (delivered between wealthier

- were wined and dined in their own

The 2013 Devon County Show takes

See www.devoncountyshow.co.uk - John Fisher

CHARLES HEAD charleshead.co.uk

marquee, whilst the rain pattered and puddled on the roof until it began to leak in so many places that guests were forced to open their umbrellas - presumably eating their meal with one hand - whilst also enduring the 11 speeches which punctuated what was destined to become a memorable repast. But the stars of the show then as now were the animals. There were eleven cattle classes with Devon Reds and South Devons high up the list of cup

SAY CHEESE: Mary Quicke MBE, one of the most inspirational farmers in Britain, with a worldwide reputation for the quality of the traditional cheeses made on the family farm near Exeter, has taken over at the top of the DCAA, which organises the Devon County Show.

winners. And there were fourteen

farms by contractors using horse-

No report of that first Show would

sheep classes, with the main breeds coming to the Show by railway train from distant Exmoor and Dartmoor before being shepherded or carted to their pens.

drawn wagons) were at the cutting

be complete without mention of

edge of technology in this the 35th

what we nowadays call the crowd-

year of Victoria’s reign.

stoppers. And in 1872 these were the sights and the sounds of the

Estate Agents covering Salcombe and the South Hams since 1902 Kingsbridge Salcombe Kingswear London 01548 852352 01548 843952 01803 752321 02076 294141

must-see attraction of the year that

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Our Churches: the Past, Present and Future…

Harford Church, upstream of Ivybridge - such a peaceful and beautiful place

spire at the centre of all our communities is something virtually everyone takes for granted. Regardless of whether they ever cross the threshold, amongst communities there is an unspoken desire to have a church in their locality for a variety of reasons.

in its midst. Fine examples of architectural design are manifold: the landmark tower at Widecombe drawing tourists from all over the country, the intricately painted roof in the chancel apse at St Luke’s Torquay, the splendour of Holne’s elaborately carved and painted screen and chancel bosses, the beautifully decorated

The importance of these buildings is undeniable, representing history, significant architecture and continuity through the generations; a place of quiet in times of personal crisis or thanksgiving at the end of a life; a place for celebration at a time of birth or marriage and even for those who do not attend regular services, they provide a spiritually uplifting occasion to come together with one's neighbours at Easter, Festivals and Christmastide. The treasures they contain are part of our rich heritage of craftsmanship, each one containing examples of skills rarely seen elsewhere, but of immense creativity and variety. South Devon is one of the most fortunate areas of the country in so many ways, with the beauty of its coastline and countryside, enhanced in every community by the church

Fabulous carved pew ends at Combeinteignhead church

rood-screen at Bovey Tracey and a particularly memorable one at Dun-

SOUTH DEVON

chideock; the fine Elizabethan eagle lectern at Ashcombe, and the stained glass windows at Dartington are just a few to whet your appetite. There are superb examples of these in our other churches, together with pulpits, fonts, capitals, doors, not to mention the delights of green men (North Bovey is a good place to start) and gargoyles to amuse at every turn! These are not the only gems to be found in our local churches. Praises should undoubtedly be sung for the rich tapestry of volunteers who work so hard to maintain, refurbish and enhance them day by day, year after year in myriad ways. The challenges they face are never-ending and constantly changing; illustrating considerable strength, ingenuity and determination in their fight against the elements impact on the fabric, the endless need to raise funds to cover running costs and the weighty load of increasing and complex regulations. And then - the tower shows a fault line, the tiles slip away, dry rot is found in the fabric - a multitude of horrors appear, all requiring extra grit and resources from these human treasures at the heart of our communities.

Coast & Country

At times like these our churches need all the friends they can garner - and amongst them is the Devon Historic Churches Trust, which is dedicated to funding repairs for the preservation of our glorious Christian architectural heritage. Like our parish communities, it is a volunteer organisation working hard to raise funds so that a vital life-line of financial aid can be provided to our Devon churches in their time of need. The ethos of the trust is ‘never to say no’ to any application within its remit and being fully aware of the complex nature of so many applications for funding from a variety of sources, has a simple, easily accessible format for each church, to enable funds to be awarded with the maximum speed and the minimum of bureaucracy. This inevitably brings its own challenges to the trust and its search for funding from supporters via donations, fundraising activities and legacies is unceasing, but unwavering, knowing that their mission is too important to allow it to fail. There is, however, an important link between these two groups and that is the craftsmen who deliver the necessary skills sensitively, efficiently

and cost-effectively; not only ensuring that the work required for these buildings of immense historical and cultural importance is carried out appropriately but also on budget. Louise Crossman Architects is a prime example of best practice in the Westcountry and has an extensive portfolio of challenging projects completed successfully, not only in the heritage and conservation sector but also in a wider context with an impressive catalogue of appreciative clients. Added to this they have an enlightened approach to the charitable sector and encourage donations to worthwhile causes like the Devon Historic Churches Trust in return for an initial consultation. So when you hear your church bells ringing out in your neighbourhood, it is good to remember this network of hardworking volunteers working day by day to ensure their church survives; the skilled professionals like Louise Crossman Architects who deliver the work required in enabling these unique and historic buildings to survive for future generations and the Devon Historic Churches Trust, dedicated to providing the vital financial support when it is needed. Judith Kauntze - Trustee Devon Historic Churches Trust

Rood screen at St Andrews Church ast Stokeinteignhead

Louise Crossman Architects was established in Withycombe, West Somerset in 1989 with a second office opening in Exeter in 2008. The award winning practice has won wide recognition for the design and execution of buildings that show a high degree of care and consideration and has a reputation for providing imaginative, sustainable and cost effective solutions, with a sensitive, environmentally friendly approach. The Devon Historic Churches Trust was established in 1972 to help with the preservation and maintenance

The Trust helps churches in use in both towns and the countryside by providing grants to assist with repairs, restoration, refurbishment and maintenance both inside and outside of historic churches within the Diocese of Exeter or County of Devon. Lady Anne Boles, Chairman DHCT, thanked Louise Crossman for her very generous donation to the work of the Trust. She said that the Trust was being called upon by many churches and chapels of all denominations in Devon for help with their buildings.

donations such as this from Louise Crossman Architects were therefore very welcome and would be quickly put to very good use. Louise Crossman Architects already has an established track record in providing essential architectural advice regarding historic buildings in both Devon and Somerset. This relationship facilitates continuing dialogue and support, and not just when the repair or renovation is work done.

LOUISE CROSSMAN ARCHITECTS PROVIDE A BOOST TO THE WORK OF DEVON HISTORIC CHURCHES TRUST

Louise Crossman Architects recently presented a cheque for £1,262.51 that had been collected by the Practice. For several years Louise Crossman Architects has run a scheme whereby a minimum donation of £25 is requested for an initial consultation for new projects or for ad hoc advice and the money is donated to a charity chosen each year by the Practice. Other charities supported in this way and in previous years include Age UK Somerset, Friends of Somerset Churches and Chapels, Shelter, and SeeAbility. Louise Crossman commented ‘All church buildings of whatever age are unique and their important historic fabric should be valued and cared for in such a way that their use can continue and that they retain their role at the centre of the community. We are very pleased to have been able to support the Trust’s work in this way”.

Pictured: Louise Crossman presenting the cheque to Lady Anne Boles, with Trustees from left to right Mr Hendrik Vollers, Col. Duncan Michie, Mr John Mills, Lady Burnell-Nugent, Mrs Rosemary Howell. of the 1,000 places of worship of all denominations across Devon. It helps to ensure the survival and maintenance of Devon's county church heritage for the centuries to come.

The very wet weather that we have experienced over the summer and autumn has brought a spate of leaks and related damage to many churches in towns and villages alike. Generous

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Further information please visit their websites: ww.lcarchitects.co.uk www.devonhistoricchurches.co.uk

Horse Care Feeding by Natalie Bucklar-Green

Natalie Bucklar-Green gives valuable advice on various aspects of horse care and welfare...

Natalie Bucklar-Green

BSc (Hons), MSc (Equine Science)

Natalie has owned horses for over 20 years and owns East Devon Riding Academy near Sidmouth. She has previously lectured in Equine Science to degree level and produced research for preparing Great Britains' equestrian teams for the Olympics. Natalie provides consultations in all aspects of Equine Science, including bitting and saddle fitting and has fitted saddles for competitors at Badminton International Horse Trials.

Feeding Horses - an Art or a Science? There’s one subject guaranteed to cause confusion amongst horse owners and that’s feeding. With so many commercial feeds available its not surprising, as they all claim to be the best for your horse! So where do you start when devising a diet? H o r s e s a r e n o n - r u m i n a nt herbivores and their digestive system is designed to receive food on a little and often basis- they have a relatively small stomach, food moves through the small intestine quite rapidly and there is a large hindgut for continual

microbial fermentation of fibre. Naturally the horse would graze for approximately 18 hours a day, taking small mouthfuls then moving on but domestic feeding practices can be quite different to this and alien to the horses anatomy and physiology. For example, the horse is designed to eat with the head lowered and feeding from mangers and haynets

So for psychological and physical reasons, the predominant part of the horses diet should be a trickle feeding of fibre, which can be provided from a variety of sources such as grass, hay and haylage. If any of these are scarce or poor quality then additional fibre can be fed in the form of chaff, unmollassed sugar beet or fibre nuts. Any short fall in energy

it needs to be fed more energy. Every food stuff has an energy value, it is finding the right amount for the individual horse that is the key and this will fluctuate as the horses needs change due to things such as workload and the weather. How much energy is provided by the grass and hay shouldn’t be forgotten about either, for example some grazing and hay is actually

hollows the back and increases the risk of dental hooks. The need to chew is a natural requirement of

(calories), protein or vitamins and minerals can then be provided by supplementary bucket feed. The

unsuitable for a lot of horses as it is predominantly rye grass. This is grown for maximum milk and meat yield in livestock- things that aren’t relevant to the majority of horses; it may be highly palatable but you don’t need rocket fuel to power a moped!

Choices of supplementary feed should primarily be made on nutritional needs the horse and if this behaviour is reduced due to limited forage provision it can easily lead to stress and the performance of unwanted behaviours such as crib biting and chewing wood. It takes approximately 10 minutes for a horse to eat a kg of bucket feed, compared to 40 minutes for a kg of hay. Because the horses stomach is relatively inelastic with a small capacity, it is designed to receive a small amount of food on a regular basis. Feeding large bucket feeds increases the rate at which food passes through, which can cause colic as food is only partially digested. Furthermore, long periods without food in the stomach (such as at night for stabled horses) leaves the stomach lining vulnerable to attack from acid, which is continually produced

requirements for these will all vary depending on the individual horse - its age, workload, health, breed, weight, etc. Any changes to feed, including hay and grass, should be done over a period of a couple of weeks to allow time for the digestive system to adjust otherwise there is an increased risk of colic.

regardless of the presence of food. This results in ulceration, which is extremely common in both leisure and competition horses and produces symptoms such as irritability, ill thrift, poor performance and crib biting.

a feed is expressed in mega joules per kg (mj/kg), with 8 mj/kg being a low energy product and 13 mj/ kg being a high energy product. To lose weight the horse needs to be fed less energy than it needs for day to day living and to gain weight

SOUTH DEVON

The choice of supplementary feed should primarily be made on nutritional need, what works for one horse may not suit another and picking a feed because you like the advert isn’t ideal, not least because you pay a premium for heavily marketed products. The cost of all those adverts has to be paid for somehow! It is usually the energy requirement of the horse that is the main consideration. Energy of

Coast & Country

Another important consideration when choosing your feed is starch levels, which should be kept as low as possible to minimise digestive disturbances. Some course mixes are 40-50% starch, which is unnecessarily high and even some feeds marketed as ‘calm’ or ‘non-heating’ can be 20% starch. Few horses need this level of starch in their diets as their energy requirements can be met without it; the many problems caused by a high starch diet include azoturia, laminitis, colic, obesity and erratic behaviour. Many leisure horses can get by on just grass and hay, supplemented with a small fibre based bucket feed with a vitamin and mineral supplement. Horses working hard, poor do-ers or veterans may need a bit more. This is where horsemanship comes in - using science to tell us about feeding principles, the digestive process and nutrient requirements and the art is applying this to the individual horse. - Natalie

Nervous Dogs by Kerry Hornett

oppy, the fox terrier, appeared

Poppy is now being treated as an adult

When I last met her she was calmer

ver y aggressive when she

dog and shown her correct place in

and more confident. She now greets

interacted with other dogs. She

the household. Amongst other things

most dogs by ignoring them. She is

would strain at the lead and pounce

she sleeps in her bed, sits on the floor,

still a work in progress, but the owners

and bark very angrily. When off the

is praised when she does something

have done exceptionally well with her.

lead she would behave as if she was

good and she is always fed after the

frightened. When I first met Poppy

human members of the household.

Behaviour which is labelled as

Kerry Hornett

she behaved very submissively, rolling over and showing her stomach. It

with fear, grief, loneliness or just a lack

Animal Communicator Helping animals with emotional behavioural problems

became very apparent that Poppy

of self-worth. When living in a pack,

Reiki Master Reiki healing Medium Reading for individuals and groups Call 01404 43522

www.linkwithanimals.co.uk

aggressive can often be connected

was very confused about her role in

herd or colony it is the strongest, most

the household.

assertive animals that thrive because

Like many owners of small dogs (and

shelter and mate. Fearful animals will

I include myself in this) Poppy had

often lash out aggressively rather than

been treated as a child of the family.

appear vulnerable. If this behaviour

they have the first choice of food,

She slept on the bed, came up on the

is misread and treated accordingly it

chairs and was generally treated as

will only make the problem worse.

the most important member of the household. Poppy was naturally an

Poppy the fox terrier

alpha female with a strong personality.

When you take on a new pet, particularly if it is a rescue, with

She had left her birth mother before

Animal communication was used to

unknown history, make sure that

important canine leadership skills had

explain to her the role she has with

you know whether it is aggressive

been taught and she didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know the

this family and safe behaviour to

or frightened before you try to solve

safe way to interact with other dogs.

display when greeting other dogs.

the behavioural problems.

EQUINE EVENTS February - March 2013 Mid Devon Point-to-Point 3 Feb - Black Forest Lodge , near Starcross, Exeter South Pool Harriers Point-to-Point 17 Feb - Dean Court Farm, Buckfastleigh Dart Vale & Haldon Harriers Point-to-Point 17 Mar - Dean Court Farm, Buckfastleigh TREC Southwest 17 Mar - Winter Indoor TREC series, Coombe Park EC, Littlehempston, Totnes If you have any equine events you wish to promote, please email: events@prestige-media.co.uk

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

The Old Vet’nry by Ken Watson Hand Milking on the Farm

wo things I greatly miss from my halcyon days as a young vet back in the 1950s. First, is hand milking,. As a Londoner, I only learnt to milk when on work experience on a farm in Cumbria when I was 20, and I loved it. I found it most relaxing, bar the odd clip round the ear from a dung-encrusted tail. A most painful experience. Despite the spread of machine milking, many farms still milked by hand and it was not just the small herds. It was much more labour intensive and of course, there was the camaraderie, and much banter between milkers. The farm worker of those days was much more independent and not above telling his employer where he was making a mistake.

I well remember during milking time at Willie Harding’s farm at East Budleigh; I was quietly doing some pregnancy diagnoses when Willie called out to a farm hand who was milking just two cows away from me. “Can I use your bucket?” “What ?” replied the hand without pausing in his work. This exchange was repeated three times until Willie, with much cursing about mankind and this hand in particular picked up the bucket and stomped off. The grumpy old man looked up at me, winked, and said “ I don’t give a toss what he does with the bucket”. Only he didn’t say toss. But the main joy of hand milking was the sound. When you started with an empty bucket it produced a high pitched singing sound on the side of the bucket which gradually deepened as the bucket filled and ended with a delightful frothy quality. Bucket full !

The Cussing Cat

Empty it into one of those delightful old fashioned coolers which looked like mothers scrubbing board in stainless steel and start again. Of course, folk who had to do it day in and day out, come cow kick or arthritic joints, might not agree, but I always found milking time to be a happy time. I remember one farm on the Topsham Rd just down from Sandygate, run by three brothers who milked over 100 cows. Milking was a joy to them, as it was in an enormous thatched shippon at Venn Ottery where the cows were all North Devons. What I miss most of all is the lovely lilting Devon accent. Where has it gone ? Down the television tube? Although I will say this; some years ago, I was visiting some friends in Connecticut USA, and we were chatting and I suddenly said “You’re speaking pure Devonshire”. All those long “a” and

“o”s. It is too big a subject to cover here, but there is one aspect about the Devonshire accent that I can cover. In the matter of gender, everything in the dialect is her. He don’t get a look in. For example, a farmer will look over the gate and gaze admiringly at his bull and say, “’Er be a good un ‘er be”. It is probably summed up best by the following, probably apocryphal anecdote. The recently widowed wife in the village is visited by the vicar. “Well, my dear,” he says, “your man is up there now playing his harp with the angels”. The widow turns away from the sink where she is doing the washing, wipes her hands and says, “’er larned to play the harp mainish quick then. ‘Er couldn’t play the ruddy tin whistle when ‘er was down ‘yer”. - Ken Watson

(‘Anger Management’ - Devon Style)

by Anne Everest-Phillips

t seems that those who lived below stairs in Cockington Court, near Torquay, in the nineteenth century could teach the present generation that so-called ‘anger management’ is far from a modern concept! My grandmother, Sarah Binham, 1860-1941, born near Newton Abbot, was immensely proud of having been the first person in her family to have attended school after attendance was made compulsory - for the princely sum of 11/2 old pence a week. There she had learned to read and it was a skill she prized for the rest of her life. Taken into ‘service’ at the age of thirteen, Sarah received a vigorous training in all aspects of home management from the housekeeper in the grand residence of Cockington Court. The enlightened housekeeper appreciated that most of the young women employed below stairs would eventually marry and run modest homes of their own and she regarded her own role as one of general educating the maids. Thus, each maid was initiated into many of the skills involved in the running of a large establishment. These included cooking for variable numbers of people, the cleaning of rooms, furniture, curtains and ornaments and general repair work. In the large steamy laundry room she helped boil linen in a great copper, adding ‘blue bags’ to keep it

white, and learning the technique of mixing starch to aid the ironing which was done by heavy flat irons which were heated over an open flame. She gradually became an expert at the careful washing of fine silks and using a special goffering iron which revitalised intricate frills on the fashionable blouses of the time. She also learned how to mend, sew, knit, crochet and make lace. Most needs of the grand family were expected to be supplied within the household. If one of the maids proved to be particularly skilled with a needle, she would be made responsible for the repair and alteration of the family’s clothing. She was also expected to pass on her skills to other maids and would teach the young women the skill of making well-fitting garments for themselves to wear as “Sunday Best” in church and also for the few hours each month when they were off duty and free to leave the big house. In such a busy household there were bound, sometimes, to be conflicts of personality. On the mantel shelf in the parlour shared by all the maids, there stood always, Sarah reminisced, a little pottery cat bought at a local fair. Such pottery figures came to be known as “fairings” and varied in size from just about 1” (2.5cm) to about 10” (25cm) high. It was towards this cat figure, often termed the “cussing cat”, that any maid who was upset about being reprimanded would ‘let down her hair’ and vent SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

her anger. In this situation, she could even talk spitefully against a superior of even curse (cuss) her mistress as the “horrible old cat”. It seems to have been a convention that any angry words spoken in the privacy of that little room would be ignored by anyone overhearing them - whether ‘staff’ or ‘family’. The cat’s function was to listen silently (perhaps even sympathetically?) so that the maid would soon get her ill-temper out of her system. Whenever a maid left employment at the big house to get married, it was the tradition that fellow servants would present her with a small cat figure to recall her time ‘in service’. To the end of her days, Grandma Binham treasured her “Cussing Cat” given to her so many years before by fellow below-stairs staff at Cockington Court. I have discovered that modern pottery versions of the Devon Cussing Cat may be ordered, in various sizes, from Angela and Vaughan Glanville who run the Ark Pottery www.arkpottery.co.uk It is unlikely that many modern purchasers would feel it appropriate to address such attractive creatures with the sort of abuse to which their predecessors were subjected to in the 19th century! - Anne Everest-Phillips

Why Not Chickens? I

first visited a local farm looking for a pair of pygmy goats to “enhance” my garden and keep as pets. I never got as far as their enclosure. Walking passed hundreds of free range chickens I was mesmerised and stopped to take a closer look. That’s it, I decided, chickens are the way forward. From snow white to bright red, it soon became apparent there were many varieties each with their own way of doing things. I choose a Light Sussex (white with black feathering and neck collar) a Loman Brown (or escape artist as I now know her) and a Black Marans which is a hefty bird with a horrible screeching voice. So Buster, Snowy and Tora were taken from their enclosure and transported to my back garden. My first thought was to allow them to free range in my garden, but my neighbour had other ideas and the novelty of the birds wandering across his

break out and do her thing elsewhere. Touch wood, I think I have cracked it now (pardon the pun) and she seems happy with the provision of her new ”state of the art“ dust bath. I won't go into the knitted jackets that were hastily designed during that cold snap…..Crazy? Oh yes, all you sniggering experienced small holders and farmers have got to remember that us townies place human qualities on to our animals and have not yet reached the sensible level of care. Bearing this in mind, when Snowy went hormonal on me this year and sat down for a week, I decided she needed to have a chance at being a mum and not put her in a sack and shake it as a farmer friend suggested, as if! The only hatching eggs I could get hold of were duck eggs so we got those not really expecting them to hatch. Snowy did her duty refusing to move for 4 weeks unless I lifted her off for some food

Animals really add colour to your life Chickens also give you eggs It's what you'd call a 'no-brainer'

Son, I'm sure I knew your father!?!? lawn soon wore off. Although the girls liked to wander around neighbouring gardens for a brief spell, they always came back when called or by bedtime. It has to be remembered they do make a bit of a mess in an ornamental garden and are no respecters of neatly placed soil. Any raked pile of leaves is a challenge to any chicken; who can kick these around the fastest? So I had to give thought to enclosing them HA! The Loman Brown seems to be the most inquisitive breed and will find a way of escaping the pen. Even though I had gone to some trouble making” chicken heaven” Tora aka Steve McQueen sees it as her duty to

and water and now we have 2 runner ducks and a Cayuga bobbing around the garden jumping in and out of my son's paddling pool. Snowy has decided not to join her “babies” in the water, but keeps a maternal eye on them from the patio and enjoys some quality 'me' time where she can act like a chicken for a while. So if you have ever considered keeping a few chickens as pets I can highly recommend it. They are fun to watch, curious and entertaining, easy and inexpensive to keep and oh yes they lay eggs too!

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

Ahh... so cute

NOTICE TO READERS

We're always looking for interesting stories / information about South Devon. If you have any ideas or wish to contribute, call us on 01395 513383

THE CREAM OF THE CROP TALENTED, AWARD WINNING AND NEW BUSINESSES IN SOUTH DEVON

Employer of the Year - David Youll Hair and Beauty, Paignton David Youll Hair and Beauty has been named

growing the salon’s

as one of the South West’s best employers in

reputation.

the regional final of the National Apprenticeship

company recognises that

Awards and National Training Awards 2012.

the success of the salon

The

depends on employing a The finalists and winners were announced at a high

highly skilled workforce

profile joint awards ceremony organised by the

and apprentices play a

National Apprenticeship Service, which was held

vital part in this.

at the Holiday Inn, Taunton on the 27 September.

The award won, was the Small Employer of

The Team at David Youll Hair and Beauty

Paignton based David Youll Hair and Beauty is a

the Year. Marcus Collins,

forward thinking, friendly and innovative salon.

manager, said “it was

It employs 18 staff including six hairdressing

so nice to win the small

apprentices. Their ‘grow your own’ strategy is

employer category and get a big pat on the

Ap p renticeship Awards cel eb r ate th e

paying dividends with a reduction in staff turnover

back, I knew we were running our apprenticeship

achievements of the country’s most outstanding

and a highly motivated workforce. They are

program well - but I didn’t know we were a shining

apprenticeship employers and their apprentices.

dedicated to ensuring their apprentices have

example !"

Both awards are organised by the National

the opportunity to access further development

Apprenticeship Service, who received in excess

and encourage staff to attend various courses

The National Training Awards recognise

of 1,500 high quality entrants this year.

and competitions both internally and externally.

organisations that have delivered outstanding

Visit www.apprenticeships.org.uk or call 08000

Apprenticeships have played a huge part in

training programmes and the National

150 600 to find out more aboutApprenticeships.

The proof is in the pudding at newly opened The House of Beauty, Torquay For many years I have dreamt about owning my

two skincare ranges, one being Carita, our luxury

own Beauty Salon & Spa.

range. They only take on two new clients in the

I have a real passion for clients' wellbeing,

going into 5* hotels or spas). There is no one

customer care and relaxation - it's so important

else in Devon and Cornwall who has secured this

to take time out for oneself, especially if you lead

product. The other skincare range that we have

UK each year and they are very selective (only

a hectic lifestyle. Our Spa offers a beautiful place

taken on is Darphin, their products are much more

to come and relax. I have put my heart and soul

aromatherapy based and have beautiful scents

into this project and it has been quite a journey!

and textures, again giving fantastic visual results.

We have designed the whole beauty spa ourselves

I have three gorgeous children and have really

(my husband and I) as I had such definite ideas

enjoyed being a mum to them all, but now that

and wanted everything to be as I had seen it in

they are older, I feel it is the right time to fulfil my

my mind's eye. I was inundated with all sorts of

dream so I am now the very proud owner of The

different skincare ranges, but I wanted to take

House Of Beauty. A beautiful boutique spa right

my time and get the right ones, so I tested them

in the heart of the village. We opened with a bang,

all for obvious reasons - this was great fun, but

Jessica Wright from 'The Only Way Is Essex' opened

what was really interesting were the results! It's

the Spa for us, which was a great success - people

all very well having a good skincare range, but

were queuing out of the door!

as they say, the proof is in the pudding. If you see good results for yourself then they are going

To find out more, pop in to see us!

to sell, and that's exactly what they do. We have

01803 200171 SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

www.thehouseofbeautytorquay.co.uk

THE CREAM OF THE

If you're the proprietor of an excellent local business, make contact with Vivienne Crump (01395 568025)

CROP

Inspirations at RGC certainly know how to outlast a storm RGC Building Supplies have been an established

of kitchen and bathroom sales,

family business in the South Hams, running for

together with two new additional

over twelve years now.

members of staff.

Showroom

Owned by Richard Griffin and managed with his

of domestic kitchen and bathroom

brother, Mark, the business started as a builders'

industry experience including

merchant and DIY, as Richard had a carpentry and

independent living facilities. Kath

building business background. Richard's wife

Tooley is fully qualified with a

Acella worked with them until the birth of their

Diploma in Interior Design. She

twin boys a couple of years ago. Being shortly

personally manages every step of

followed by the arrival of a daughter last year, she

her projects from initial concept to

currently has a very different full time job!

final completion. They both join

Photo courtesy of: Arthur Kay

Manager Michael Clack has a wealth

Donna who has been successfully The business had a tremendous start, and due to

planning kitchens and bathrooms

demand, the premises were expanded from 3,500

at RGC for over five years.

sq ft to 10,000 sq ft. Unfortunately, the work was

Donna Donoghue, Michael Clack, Richard Griffin, Kath Tooley Inspirations at RGC

completed just as the last recession began to

Richard and Mark have now

bite, but the business managed to 'weather the

managed to trade through two

storm' through some difficult times. Recently a

recessions and they pride themselves on offering

forward to 2013.

very smart new 4,000 sq ft first floor showroom

good old fashioned service, to include total project

RGC can be contacted on 01803 834622.

has been added to cater for the increasing levels

management from start to finish and are looking

Renovating a barn, setting up a new business and becoming a mum - keeps Jenny busy Life-changing decisions have been second nature

challenge. “The last three years have been full

for Jenny Luxton over the past three years! The

of excitement - the arrival of my gorgeous son,

arrival of her son, Charlie, in 2010 heralded a new

moving back to a place I adore and setting up

era for the 33-year-old, when she made the brave

my own business. I've loved every minute!” The

decision to leave the corporate world she had

hard work certainly paid off! Jenny passed her

built a successful career in and follow her dream

Diploma in Interior Design with distinction and

of setting up her own interior design consultancy.

also qualified as a consultant with the House Doctor Network.

This additional training,

Not content with embarking on this exciting

combined with her natural flair for transforming

new venture AND being a new mum, she and

spaces, has enabled Jenny to become a real expert

her partner Ian also took the plunge and relocated

in home staging, de-cluttering and re-organising.

from the Midlands to Devon, where Jenny grew up.

“It’s amazing how in just a few hours people’s homes can be transformed from chaotic places

Jenny was no stranger to the world of interiors,

to calm, organised havens. My clients have been

having headed up store visual & design teams

overwhelmed and are literally speechless when

for large high street retailers, but making the

they see the results - I've even had them burst

transition was a challenge nonetheless.

into delighted tears!”

Studying with the British Institute of Interior

Jenny Luxton Interiors was launched last year, and

to me. Your home is the one place that you can

Design whilst also juggling nappy changes and

her services cover everything from decor ideas to

be you and it is my passion to understand that

renovating her new barn conversion, proved

full home makeovers. Her mission is to help her

and deliver your dream within budget, on time,

difficult at times, but Jenny has relished the

clients to turn houses into homes, no matter how

every time”. 07903 888472

Jenny Luxton

great or small the project. “From the moment we meet, your aspiration and the end result matters

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

INVESTMENT & FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS PARTNERSHIP LLP

A specialist investment and retirement service covering all of south Devon

Independent Financial Advisers The Partnership

Experience Matters

Helen and Ian have worked together for a number of years and in 2011 they decided to pool their considerable experience by creating a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) which is directly regulated by the Financial Services Authority. With premises in South and East Devon, clients are able to have face to face meetings to discuss their financial plans. The partnership is ready to meet the challenges of the Retail Distribution Review next year and is committed to offering fully independent advice on a fee basis.

Between the partners they have over 50 years' experience of providing independent financial advice. This considerable experience enables them to help clients plan realistic financial goals and to implement recommendations whilst responding to changes in the stockmarket and legislation. Both partners are required to keep their technical knowledge up-to-date regarding changes to investment markets, products and legislation.

Our Service

Ready to meet new challenges

There are three levels of service. Firstly, our Asset Management Service, which is aimed at clients who want a comprehensive service covering all aspects of their financial planning. Secondly, our Valuations Service, which is aimed at clients with existing investment portfolios and is designed to give them a consolidated over view and regular monitoring. Finally, a Transaction Service which is designed to provide one-off advice without on-going servicing.

In 2013, the Retail Distribution Review (RDR) will introduce a number of changes. Firstly, charges will be clearer with independent financial advisers arranging an agreed up-front charge instead of commission. Services will be clearer, only independent financial advisers will be able to offer whole of market advice whilst other advisers will have limitations. Your service will be more professional because independent advisers will have to meet higher standards of qualifications and on-going professional development.

4 Castle Circus House, 136 Union St, Torquay & Beech Royd, 6 Bennetts Hill, Sidmouth t. 0845

351 9928

Investment & Financial Solutions Partnership LLP is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority The Financial Services Authority does not regulate all forms of Estate Planning

SOUTH DEVON

Coast & Country

INVESTMENT & FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS PARTNERSHIP LLP

4 Castle Circus House, 136 Union St, Torquay & Beech Royd, 6 Bennetts Hill, Sidmouth t. 0845

Retirement choices

Warning handle with care!

You can see that DIY retirement planning can be dangerous for all the above reasons. A further worry for DIY retirement planners is how to access the information that they need. I believe that you have to be careful how you source your information from the internet and the press since some of it may be out of date and some of it ill-informed. Don`t forget commission is still paid to intermediaries if you opt to use a website for a non-advised annuity service where you make your own decisions and therefore you might not be getting the perceived value for money. Advice provided by an independent financial adviser is now fee based and is very transparent. Not only do you benefit from professional advice but also all your administration and paperwork is expertly managed for

351 9928 you. This can take some of the stress out of the whole process. Going through the advisory process is a journey which I believe has benefited many clients, some of whom started off with very predetermined ideas about what they wanted at outset and who, along the way, discovered that, in fact, there was a more suitable option for them that they didn't know about. Independent financial advice may enable you to consider your options more widely and help you to arrive at your ideal destination. For more details - and to ask about how we can help please phone on: 0845 351 9928.

Many people coming up to retirement will soon be making one of the most important financial decisions of their life. Many would-be retirees may have large funds and therefore deciding on retirement options is important and will affect almost every aspect of their retirement. Often retirement option decisions are irrevocable and therefore the consequences will live with you throughout retirement. Many may not realise that there is not just one decision to be made, but in fact, a multitude of decisions. This is because there are many more choices available nowadays and even if you feel that an annuity is the right product for you, it might surprise you to consider that there is an increasingly wide range of annuities available including enhanced, impaired and investment annuities. There is no doubt that this is a complex market and making sure that you have expert advice could be the best decision you make. Taking time and advice to carefully consider all the possibilities means that you have a much better chance of pinpointing the right option for you. Taking professional financial advice also means that you are more likely to understand the advantages and the drawbacks of your decision. For many people, understanding the myriad of legislative changes that affect this area of financial planning is a daunting experience and there's always a possibility that confusion or misunderstanding could adversely affect your decision if you decide to do DIY planning. Finally, if an annuity isn't suitable, you also have the opportunity to explore an increasingly long list of alternative products, many of which are highly complex.

Helen Mulvaney (Partner) BA Hons, Dip M. DipPFS

Ian Pennicott (Partner) DipPFS

Helen has recently been awarded her Diploma and intends to continue her studies towards the Advanced Diploma. Helen is married with 2 young sons and therefore much of her spare time is spent with her family. She enjoys travelling and is particularly interested in art and history. She has a strong appreciation of Devon and the special quality of life that can be enjoyed living here.

Ian is working towards his Advanced Diploma in financial planning with the intention of becoming Chartered. However, in his spare time he enjoys hashing (a social running group), playing trombone in a jazz band and cooking. Ian and his partner Cathy enjoy their regular family Sundays.

for What's On, visit: southdevonhub .co.uk

INVESTMENT & FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS PARTNERSHIP LLP

INDEPENDENT FINANCIAL ADVISERS A specialist investment and retirement service covering all of south Devon

Finding financial solutions for you

Need help managing your investments? Our practice can provide risk graded advisory portfolios and a regular valuation and monitoring service using the latest technology. We specialise in this service.

Approaching or in retirement? For those approaching or in retirement, ensure that all your options have been considered. We research the whole market to find the most suitable annuity and retirement options. We specialise in this service.

t. 0845 351 9928 4 Castle Circus House, 136 Union St, Torquay & Beech Royd, 6 Bennetts Hill, Sidmouth Investment & Financial Solutions Partnership LLP is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority The Financial Services Authority does not regulate all forms of Estate Planning

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