Letters to the Editor August 2023

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5 August 2023

We’ll barely have time to celebrate the fact that The BV turns three this month (THREE YEARS! How is that possible?) – we have a packed few weeks ahead. As I write we’re just ten days away from the second Clayesmore Classic & Supercar Sunday, which is swiftly followed by the Gillingham & Shaftesbury Show. If you’re going (and obviously you should if you can!) do come and say hello if you spot us around the showground. I promise we’re friendly and we’d love it if you did! Straight afterwards we’ll be looking ahead at the Dorset County Show, and of course rolling swiftly into our September issue before we can blink, as well as the Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival and squeezing in a trip to London for another awards ceremony … and then we just might go find somewhere quiet for a very loo-o-onng nap.
(and no we are NOT going to discuss the fact that I have seen two high street chains appear in my social media feed this week with Christmas trees up and decorations for sale in store).
However, you’ll never find us complaining about a busy month (well, not often – I admit I’m not a total ray of sunshine when running on too little sleep and too much caffeine). Though we’ve lived here for more than 30 years, the last three spent running The BV has allowed us to see like never before the rich tapestry of Dorset. We’ve had the privilege of getting to know so many of you, and every issue reveals more of the resilience and character, the strength, the goodwill, and the sheer talent that defines our local businesses and communities.
Contrary to popular perception, we locals know that Dorset is so much more than some beautiful beaches and a famous cobbled hill. It’s a beautiful hub of innovation, creativity, and determination. The awards we’ve won this year have been a welcome nod to our efforts over the last three years, of course, but the real reward lies in knowing that thousands of people appreciate what we do.
We feel we’ve grown not just as a publication but as a part of the community. We’re committed to supporting local, sharing stories that matter, and being a voice for Dorset. Thanks for sticking with us.

French housing plan
Now we seem to have got to the stage where houses can be built in a council’s area even when all the council and residents object.Perhaps we should take a lesson from some French towns. There, the council buy some appropriate land, put in the road and facilities and then grant individual permission to residents to build on the plots as and when the council see fit. Stops this wholesale development by big building firms just out to make a huge buck regardless of what the locals want.
Roger Tatler, Gillingham

Save the planet!
It is a phrase used everywhere we look. I am not an activist nor an eco-campaigner and I am not about to start superglueing myself to the M25 or London Waterloo express train.
I do believe that we should all try and do our bit, relative to our means and circumstance. Maybe then we can save our grandchildren and great grandchildren from the perilous fate that looms ahead.
For our ‘bit’ we have swapped our diesel cars for electric ones since 2016. We have spent the last 11 years making our home more energy efficient, as time and resources allowed.
Our house has moved from an EPC rating of D in 2012 to A in 2022 – for a 1980s built detached house, this is no mean feat!
We have insulated under the floors, added more loft insulation, cavity wall insulation, fitted A+ rated double glazing and doors. We had 4KW PV installed in 2012 and wherever possible replaced older inefficient appliances with A+++ rated new ones. For the last year we ran the whole house 24/7 from either solar power or off-peak electricity (pulled in overnight at a fifth of the price).
This year we have had an Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) installed, and added a second Powerwall to further support the running of the ASHP.
We are adding to our solar system to try and reduce our pull on the grid some more.
This should mean that we were able to export a lot more green solar-generated electricity back to the grid, helping everyone else reduce their carbon footprint too. However, our energy distribution network operator SSEN have put a stop to that – we were granted permission to install the extra panels on condition that the installers block our ability to export any electricity to the grid from them!
The excess green electricity we generate from the new system will now be grounded to earth and lost, whilst somebody somewhere burns more oil, gas and coal to generate dirty electricity to keep up with demand.
It is high time that pressure from the government was put on the likes of SSEN to up their game and upgrade the energy networks urgently so they are fit for the future that is fast approaching.
Ian Tattersall, Gillingham

On Simon Hoare
We are watching wildfires ravaging parts of Europe yet again, as well as unmanageable temperatures in the USA, China and the global south. Clearly ever-accelerating indicators show that the world is now on the cusp of a number of tipping points which will make runaway climate change inevitable. Recent research suggests the gulf stream may collapse as early as 2025 with catastrophic results.
Professor Sir Robert Watson was clear on the Today Programme last week – he thinks 1.5 as a goal is becoming unreachable due to lack of political will, and states that in this country the measures to ensure we reach our commitments to the Paris agreement aren’t there in any shape or form.
Lord Deben of the UKCCC (until recently) stated our government was setting ‘the worst kind of example to the rest of the world’ compared to other countries who are really moving on green solutions rather than empty pledges while actively supporting new oil and coal initiatives.
This week, Rishi Sunak has clearly shown that, rather than creating opportunities for people across the UK to mitigate the seriousness of the situation we are facing, he prefers to fabricate an anti-green mantra to bolster an election campaign.
I therefore find Simon Hoare’s statement (The BV, Jul 23)‘Confidence in the commitment of the government to achieve progress cannot be in serious question.’ extremely surprising.
It is at complete odds with anything these eminent climate scientists are saying – and the actions of his government.
Karen Wimhurst, Shaftesbury

The solar farm
Dorset Council Strategic Planning Committee have approved plans for a 188 acre Solar development, stretching for 1 mile from north east to south west, on a site between Mappowder, Pulham, Kings Stag and Hazelbury Bryan.
Scant consideration was given to local residents’ very real concerns that existing high levels of flooding would be exacerbated by concentrated run off from panels creating runnels which would increase water levels quickly and cause flash floods. The area is already in a flood zone and the ground saturates for about six months of the year. The applicants have failed to provide adequate infiltration tests of the site or confirm the number of panels planned so it is currently impossible to calculate the risk. The Committee appeared to be more concerned with the relocation of crested newts or whether or not sheep would be grazed under the panels.
At one point debate surrounded the issue of potential fire in battery storage areas; objectors and observers were surprised that Planning and Flood Officers did not point out that there is in fact no battery storage planned in the application under consideration.
Landscape Officers’ and the AONB’s concerns that significant damage would be caused to views from the Bulbarrow ridge were brushed aside with the comment that the panels would have a non reflective coating.
Significantly neither the Landscape nor Heritage officers were present and the AONB was not represented.
Some will respond that the climate emergency means that renewable energy must trump every other consideration but is this acceptable when giant solar plants destroy cherished views, fence wildlife out of their usual habitat, take good farmland out of production at a time of food insecurity and risk lives and livelihoods due to exacerbated flooding?
National and Dorset Planning policy states clearly that environmental damage must not be disregarded during the move to low carbon energy generation but in this case, elements of policy have been ignored. My personal view is that if larger than about 60 acres, these plants should be located close to motorways or other semi industrial areas where the landscape, habitat and tranquillity is already blighted.
Subsidies should be offered to industry and agriculture to cover suitable roofs with solar panels. Taking into account their enthusiasm to cover unspoiled country with industrial panels, it is also surprising that Dorset Council do not insist on solar panels and water butts to be standard with every new dwelling and encourage farms and businesses to install panels on their buildings.
Catherine Langham, by email

The Pet of the Month Facebook post was once again a happy parade of good pets. Would you like your pet to be featured?
Share them on Facebook or send an email to [email protected].
Please be sure to include your pet’s name, age, and a couple of fun details about them.

Weeding, watching and watering

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Editorial team

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4 August 2023

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August is the month for monitoring – staying on top of this year’s flowers while you prep for next year, says gardener Pete Harcom

The weather we have been having lately seems to swing from one extreme to another, doesn’t it? The dry June followed by the wet July – thank goodness our gardens have escaped the heat of mainland Europe.
Jobs for the garden this month:

August is perhaps the month to simply try and maintain the show of flowering plants, and to clear up the borders and flowers to help the display to continue!
Keep up the regular feeding and deadheading – especially roses, dahlias and perennials. It really does help to keep the displays going.
Cut back delphiniums, geraniums and lavender after the first flush of flowers to encourage a second flowering period. Feed them after you cut them back.
Divide clumps of bearded iris and take cuttings of your patio and container plants ready for next year.
Thin out any thickly overgrown pond plants.
Most perennial weeds are best dealt with in the summer when the weeds are in active growth. Sorry to say that digging them out is usually best if you are trying to avoid using weedkillers.
Start collecting seed from plants you want to grow next year – especially foxgloves, aquilegia, calendula, poppy and love-in-a-mist.
Sow biennials such as foxgloves, sweet William and wallflowers, honesty and forget-me-nots. They’ll be ready to plant out in the autumn and make a stunning display next spring.
If pot plants are pestered by nesting ants, try putting the pot in a large saucer with water in it – but have the pot resting on pot stands above the water level.
Watering hasn’t been an issue lately (!), but on the offchance we should get a burst of hot weather, take extra care of container-grown plants and any in the border that are not yet established. It is always best to water plants in the cooler parts of the day and at the roots only.
On hot days, water from a hosepipe can be trickled into the pond to help top up and aerate the water. Be sure to also top up bird baths.
Damping down the floor of the greenhouse regularly on hot days helps.
Plan ahead if you are going on holiday – maybe a neighbour can help if hot weather is forecast, or at least thoroughly soak plants before you go. There are a number of watering devices available such as watering mats, micro-drip watering systems with a timer, watering spikes and adjustable drip feeders.
Also, if you are going away it’s a good idea to move hanging baskets and pots to a shady area (just place the hanging baskets on a large pot).

Watch the Eagle soar

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Editorial team

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4 August 2023

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The BV’s astrophotographer Rob Nolan is back – and counting the days to those long winter nights

Well, what can we say about the British Summer holidays so far? Not a lot that’s good!
I had such high aspirations for warm nights of observations, with clear sunny skies for some solar imaging, too. Alas, neither has so far come to fruition. Hopefully the weather will improve as we move through the month.
As we wait for the longer nights, there’s a target that I last captured in 2021. It peeks above the horizon and is best seen during the month of July here in the UK. The Eagle Nebula in the Serpens constellation is famously home to the Pillars of Creation, that astounding image many of us recognise instantly which was taken by the Hubble space telescope back in 1995.
It’s a target I’ve shared before in this column, the use of my newer mono camera and scope means that I’ve been able to capture far more detail this time around, and also represent the different gases using what’s known as the ‘Hubble palette’, showing off the amazing emission nebulas in glorious golden reds, greens and blue (representing sulphur, hydrogen and oxygen).
The Eagle Nebula itself is roughly 7,000 light years away from Earth and is known as a stellar nursery, due to the amount of newborn stars being created from the abundance of gases. Stretching roughly four to five light years, the Pillars of Creation are a fascinating but relatively small feature of the entire Eagle Nebula, which itself spans approximately 70 by 55 light years.
If you’re on a tablet or phone, rotate to see the image in landscape orientation – you’ll be able to easily make out the huge eagle shape of the nebula, including the head and wings. Personally though, with the detail we can now more readily reveal, I think I it looks much more like a dragon! It’s a target I’ll never get bored of imaging, and I just hope I can get some more time on it next year.

This month’s image was captured with my 1000mm Maksutov Newtonian Telescope and the ZWO ASI2600MM Pro Astro camera with Narrowband filters – it’s about 4.5 hours of data.

The night sky, August 2023 – Rob’s guide for your stargazing this month:

This month we’ll be treated to a festival of various celestial events – if the cloud will give way like stage curtains to reveal the grand show! There is so much to observe this month.
Starting with the Milky Way Arch itself, which begins to reveal itself beautifully as the darker nights return. You’ll easily be able to find three bright shining stars in our glowing galaxy band –Vega, Deneb and Altair. These stars mark out the verticals of what’s known as the Summer triangle.
Closer to home, we’ll be treated to two supermoons this month, the second of which is the brightest full moon of the year.
Saturn also reaches opposition this month, meaning it’s the best time to observe this beautiful planet and its rings as it’s the closest it will come to Earth this year.
Starting at the beginning of the month, the first supermoon was on the 1st of August – and we all missed it due to the British weather! But fear not, we get another chance on the 31st to witness a Blue Supermoon, the biggest supermoon of the year. Don’t miss it! You’ll need to set your alarm clock – the Moon will peak at 2.35am.
Over the upcoming weekend of the 8th, look to the Moon to see Jupiter hanging to the right. On the 9th, The Pleiades will join the stage alongside the Moon and Jupiter to create a pleasing trio.
The major event of the month is the night of the 12th/13th – we’ll witness the climax of the Perseid meteor shower. This year it’s due to be a great show for observing, so lets cross our fingers for good clear skies!
These prolific shooting stars (actually dust from comet Swift-Tuttle) will be burning up high above our heads in what is usually the best annual meteor shower that we’re invited to.
Finally, on the 31st, that biggest Supermoon of the year. It’ll be 30 per cent brighter than the faintest Full Moon we observe, so it wont be a blinding ball of rock in the sky, but it will still be an impressive sight. While you’re there, you’ll see Saturn hanging out close to our shining Lunar beacon.
Next month , we’ve got an exciting expedition returning to Earth from space, and also the Autumn Equinox. Until then, Clear Skies!

Get your feet ready for stomping!

By

Editorial team

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4 August 2023

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Fancy a night of festival style footstomping, dancing and singing? It’s going to be quite an evening when Old Time Sailors visit The Exchange in Sturminster Newton for the first time on Friday 8th September! You will be sailing back to the 19th century for an immersive experience – seafaring music performed in a way you have never seen before.
The motley crew and their plethora of traditional and eclectic instruments will take you back to the time of clashing tankards and drunken debauchery – and you’ll wonder why we ever left!
The Old Time Sailors have recently taken Glastonbury and Bestival by storm, as well as headlining at festivals throughout the south west.
Kicking off the Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival weekend, guest real ales will be on sale, as well as the full bar, and as dancing is very much encouraged, only the raked seating will be out! There’ll be plenty of space to sing and dance like a drunken sailor as the band perform centuries-old folk and shanty songs.
Fancy dress is encouraged – pull out your best seafaring garments, me hearties, and come join the festivities!

Tickets from Box Office: 01258 475137 or stur-exchange.co.uk.
Usual price £18:
SPECIAL OFFER PRICE £14 – just quote ‘BV Magazine’.

August’s BV is here!

By

Laura

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4 August 2023

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The BV is quite the jam-packed treat this month – from the biggest local issues to the maddest local history, from a guide to the Gilingham & Shaftesbury Show to the story of the Dorset Axemen. Plus politics, farming, wildlife, art, photography, a Dorset walk, pages of What’s On … and there’s a Peach & Pecan summer cake to make too. Frankly, it’d be rude not to …

Dorset Council has approved a controversial 190-acre solar farm in the Blackmore Vale – we look at the details
The village of Henstridge is facing 182 new homes – just a few miles down the road to Stalbridge which is currently seeing it’s fifth major development proposal. With access via the already problematic and narrow A357, there are strong concerns about road safety, infrastructure and the impact on the village character
Gillingham & Shaftesbury Show is back! The rural day out is a celebration of community, countryside and tradition – and it’s a feast for the eyes, ears, and taste buds!
In the Trethowans farming section, Andrew Livingston doesn’t have a soapbox, but he happily clambers onto a milk crate to look at the unfair struggle between agriculture and supermarkets
Did you know red kite were once a common sight in Elizabethan London? The bird is a popular conservation success story, says Dorset Wildlife Trust’s Jack Clarke, but is still at risk from poisoning
If you’re attending Dorset County Show this year, you might want to stop and see the Dorset Axemen. Mick Percival went from wood-chopping hobbyist to invincible, record-breaking champion – and now he gives spellbinding showground performances
After four decades behind the cameras on some of the UK’s biggest TV drama and film productions – including Paddington, Dr Who, Call the Midwife, Poldark and Grand Designs – Simon Priestman and his wife Karen decided it was time for a change in lifestyle. They bought bought a boutique vineyard in Dorset – and promptly created an award-winning wine

A guided tour of Duropolis, Jane Goodall’s Random 19 and ‘when package holidays go wrong’!

By

Laura

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3 August 2023

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Two brilliant interviews in this episode (I’m allowed to say that because Jenny and Terry do all the work!) – the first with Rachel from Citizen’s Advice, and the second with an archaeology expert discussing Dorset’s long-running archaelogical dig affectionately known as Duropolis. And we”re thrilled to have Dr Jane Goodall’s Random 19 answers, too.

In an engrossing interview, Paul Cheatham, the geophysical survey director responsible for the archaelogical digs at Dorset’s ‘Duropolis’, effectively gives us a personal guided tour of the site that was discovered in 2007, and what the team have found in the subsequent 12 years of digs as they explore the hillside.
He admits that everywhere the team survey they find a new settlement to explore – whether Iron Age, Bronze Age or Roman, from the Mesolithic to the late Roman era, the Dorset hillsides are covered in remnants of early communities. During the medieval period people moved into the valleys and finally left the high grounds, but counter to perceived wisdom, Paul explains that early man did not in fact choose hilltops for defence purposes – and he also talks Jenny through Iron Age fridges.

Rachel Rogers provides some specific advice around what to do when a package holiday goes wrong! Talking to Terry, she provides an interesting look at the work of Dorset’s Citizen’s Advice – no longer the CAB, the organisation does a lot more than is widely understood.

Admittedly a chimpanzee-studying lady in Africa may not have been everyone’s childhood hero, but for editor Laura – an animal-obsessed girl growing up in a big Essex town – the life of her dreams was being lived by Jane Goodall, the renowned ethologist and inspiring conservationist. Even at 89 Dr Jane Goodall remains a powerhouse of action, and her answers to this month’s Random 19 questions are everything you could hope for – from Lord of the Rings to an evocative stream of memories of a life lived in the wild (there’s also a controversial opinion on biscuit dunking).

Chef/Cook Required | Virginia Ash Pub

By

Editorial team

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2 August 2023

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The Virginia Ash are looking for a chef/cook to join the team.

Experience preferred but not essential as training will be provided.

You must be able to work evenings and weekends.

The position can be full or part time.

Wages and hours to be negotiated

Please contact Kimberley on: 01963 363 868

or [email protected]

What’s on at the Exchange August – Sept 2023

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Editorial team

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1 August 2023

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All the good things that are happening at the Exchange Sturminster Newton in August and September

BOX OFFICE: 01258 475137
BOOK ONLINE 24/7: WWW.STUR-EXCHANGE.CO.UK

Beautiful North Dorset circular walk from Okeford Fitzpaine | 7.5miles

By

Laura

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31 July 2023

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If you’re looking to find the true rural heart of North Dorset, the untouched landscape that feels unchanged for centuries, then this might be the walk you’re looking for.

Following paths tucked into the rolling countryside that sits below the more glamorous ridge walks, you’ll avoid any big climbs, and yet manage to enjoy almost constant stunning views.

Desite a lack of any hill climbing the far-reaching views on this walk are unbeatable

We took our time with this walk, and it felt like a mini holiday. We didn’t see another person (other than a couple enjoying their own back garden as we strolled past with a wave), and felt like we were lost in Enid Blyton’s Dorset.

The route follows old green lanes and winds through the thick centuries-old hedges that are bounding the small, oddly-shaped fields so typical of old Dorset.

The footpath through the wonderful wild meadow belonging to the Barkhill Shepherd’s Huts

A few paths were very overgrown – we walked in early July, and a sturdy stick was soon collected to beat back the nettle and bramble at regular intervals.

You can just see from the post marker on the left of the image that this is a bridleway…

Stiles through hedges were rarely sturdy and well kept (seemingly typical in North Dorset!), but mostly they did exist and were entirely usable. The ones crossing streams were the most solid, thankfully!

Ibberton church has a wonderful view of Bulbarrow

A couple of times we couldn’t see the exit to a field until we were literally right on top of it – trust the map, the stiles and bridges ARE there, they’re just buried in the hedgerows!

It’s easy to miss the footpath sign on this wall (it’s on the far right) in Okeford Fotzpaine right at the start of the walk!

Parking is easy in Okeford Fitzpaine village – and there’s a lovely village shop as well as a pub for a post-walk ice cream or a pint!