“At the time of writing Valentine’s Day is fast approaching and as an alternative to chocolate or flowers I’m recommending Natasha Lunn interviewing some of our must enduring authors for their thoughts on love and relationships. Or if you were simply in the mood for a satisfying read then the excellent Francis Spufford is a great choice for a winter’s night” – Wayne
“This book might just change your life.” Sunday Times
After years of feeling that love was always out of reach, journalist Natasha Lunn set out to understand it. She turned to authors and experts to learn about their experiences, asking: How do we find love? How do we sustain it? And how do we survive when we lose it? In Conversations on Love she began to find the answers: Philippa Perry on falling in love slowly, Dolly Alderton on vulnerability, Stephen Grosz on accepting change, Diana Evans on parenthood, Emily Nagoski on the science of sex, Alain de Botton on the psychology of being alone, Esther Perel on unrealistic expectations and many more…
“I underlined passages on almost every page of this wide- ranging, tender-hearted book” Evening Standard
Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2021. November 1944. A German rocket strikes London, and five young lives are atomised in an instant. That rocket never lands. A single second in time is altered, and five young lives go on – to experience all the unimaginable changes of the twentieth century. Because maybe there are always other futures. Other chances. From the best-selling, prize-winning author of Golden Hill, Light Perpetual is a story of the everyday, the miraculous and the everlasting. Ingenious and profound, full of warmth and beauty, it is a sweeping and intimate celebration of the gift of life. “My god he can write. One of the best opening chapters and closing chapters you’ll ever read.”Richard Osman
In 2022 Winstone’s celebrates 10 years as Sherborne’s Independent Bookseller. Winstone’s has won the ‘British Book Awards South West Bookseller of the Year’ four times and was winner of the ‘Independent Bookseller of the Year’ national award in 2016. Owner Wayne Winstone was previously one of the three judges for the Costa Prize for Fiction. This year Wayne was selected as one of the top 100 people in the Book Trade’s Most Influential Figures listing.
I love this recipe – its simple to make, oh-so-dreamy and rich, and it’s gluten free too. I first experimented using gluten free flour to accommodate a dietary requirement but I never went back to plain flour; for some reason it just really works in this recipe! (NB.if you are making this for a coeliac, then do make sure that your chocolate is gluten free too, as not all are). These recipes make the perfect puddings too – I often serve with fresh raspberries and cream. If you wanted something a little ‘extra’ then you can bake half a Creme Egg into the top (see image left): just cut the eggs in half and add them to the top after the first 30 minutes baking time and return the tray to the oven). If you are looking for a pancake recipe for Pancake Day on Tuesday 1st March then check out my recipe from the February 2021 BV magazine here… Heather x
Ingredients
100g butter
150g caster sugar
100g soft brown sugar
50g golden syrup
4 eggs
70g gluten free plain flour (standard plain flour works too)
75g dark chocolate (broken into pieces) – ensure it is gluten free if necessary
Dreamy GF brownies image: Heather Brown
Method
Pre heat the oven to 170o fan/gas 5. •
Line an 8” (20cm) square cake pan with baking parchment.
In a saucepan, heat together the butter, caster sugar, soft brown sugar and golden syrup on a medium heat. Make sure to keep stirring so the mixture doesn’t catch and burn.
When the butter has melted and all the ingredients have combined, pour in the chocolate pieces and stir the mixture as they melt.
When the chocolate has completely melted, take the saucepan off the heat.
Add in all 4 eggs and stir them into the mixture until completely combined.
Then tip in the flour and mix slowly until well combined.
Pour the chocolatey batter into the tin and pop into the oven.
Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, check your brownies and turn the pan 180º so it bakes evenly (most ovens don’t bake evenly so its worth doing this step despite the momentary lowering of the oven temperature).
Bake for another 10 minutes. The top should now have cracks right across the middle (not just around the edge) and not ‘jiggle’ in the centre when the pan is gently wobbled. If it is still quite jiggly or it isn’t cracked across the middle, then bake for a further 5 minutes.
Leave to cool in the pan on a wire rack. To cut the brownies cleanly, leave to cool then pop the whole pan into the fridge for a couple of hours. They will then cut with a sharp knife.
Embrace your sweet tooth with these indulgent Creme Egg brownie variations image: Heather Brown
Heather Brown is on the committee of the Guild of Food Writers; a home economist with a passion for Dorset’s brilliant foodie scene. Heather runs Dorset Foodie Feed, championing Dorset’s food and drink businesses, as well as working with her food industry clients.
There is a whole new social world to be enjoyed with carriage riding – and you don’t need to own a horse, says Clare Turner.
The Turner family on a pony carriage and Jon Turner running.
Where was the original boot or dashboard? What was the original rally car? The answers lie in carriages and the sport of carriage driving.
Please pardon the pun, but there are many routes in to driving. Often people start by ‘breaking in’ an outgrown riding pony (with expert help – available via British Driving Society or British Carriage Driving) Those that don’t have access to a horse or pony of their own may enjoy helping at local events, becoming grooms or ‘backsteppers’ to a local driver – social media is always a good place to make contact with local driving groups to find drivers needing an extra pair of hands. It’s also possible to book carriages and drivers for all sorts of occasions – a driving lesson, a picnic drive for a birthday, a prom night, weddings and funerals. One of the local companies for this is Highsteppers at Pallington.
Portman Pony Club Members on their ponies
Make new friends
The social aspect means that there are always two people on the carriage, more if you have a bigger carriage – so there’s always conversation to be had and people to meet as you drive.
Inclusive sport
Carriage driving is a diverse and accessible sport, catering for all ages, and to both able bodied and disabled the benefits of time spent with animals and out in the fresh air speak for themselves and carriages provide access for everyone equally. There is also the historical aspect of driving. Many vehicles and the harnesses that you may find in the show ring at county shows are antiques, fully functional and beautifully presented for the event. ‘Mr Private Driving’ is a marvellous source of education, particularly for those interested in showing, and he is endlessly entertaining for armchair supporters of the sport.
The Highsteppers Driving Team
Join the community
It is absolutely the best way to travel, you can’t beat bowling along with a friend and a lovely horse or pony trotting along in front and maybe a carriage dog at your wheel!
In short the driving community are a group of like-minded people who enjoy the sport and want to have fun with their animals.
There are all sorts of carriage driving activities from rallies, sports driving, scurry driving, showing, fun days, carriage dogs, fancy dress, long reining – most involve picnics and all include friendly faces – maybe something to consider for 2022.
by Clare Turner, Skylands Coaching & Training Centre
Dorothy Brown, an experienced insolvency practitioner, shares the most common signs which may be causing you distress in your business.
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1 – Cash Flow
The first sign things are going wrong is a constant lack of cash. The old adage that cash is king exists for a reason. All businesses suffer periodic dips where cash is tight. But if cash flow is continually a problem, the business is in trouble. If a business is continually spending more than it earns, unless it is deliberate and well-funded (as with some tech businesses at launch) it will lead to problems.
2 – Defaulting on bills
Everyone misses a payment or forgets a bill, but if the frequency with which it occurs increases, it suggests a business can’t pay its way. This is a sign it is underfunded, isn’t chasing debts hard enough or is heading to liquidation. Defaults on HMRC or on other formal arrangements can be particularly damaging. It can also be bad for your reputation and that of your business.
3 – Extended debtor or creditor days
Another sign of possible trouble is a rise in either debtor or creditor days. If your business has to delay payments to creditors, this can force some suppliers to cut off the supply of vital components or ingredients. Likewise, if you are unable to effectively chase payment it may cause future cash flow problems. Either way, sudden changes in these numbers should be investigated to see whether they are signs of something more serious.
4 – Falling margins
Ask any experienced entrepreneur and they will tell you that for long-term survival what matters are profits, not sales. As the old saying goes, turnover is vanity, profit is sanity. Falling margins suggest that costs are too high, and prices or income is too low. This is not a sustainable position.
5 – Unhappiness
It may sound simple, but businesses in distress are rarely happy. Owners and managers, who can sense something is wrong (but may not be sure what) get stressed and pass it on. They start cutting at random to make savings or deploy sudden switches in strategy to try and revive things. Lots of senior people may leave in a short time. These are all signs that the business might be heading down the decline curve and that action is needed urgently to pull things back.
What to do?
The main thing is to talk to someone. There are many organisations you can contact to help out, which does include your bank and HMRC.
You can also talk to an Insolvency Practitioner, such as myself.
For the third consecutive year, Blanchards Bailey participated in drafting Wills in return for a donation to Dorchester’s Weldmar Hospicecare.
Throughout October 2021, the private client department at Blanchards Bailey LLP undertook the drafting of thirty Wills in aid of Weldmar Hospicecare based in Dorchester. Clients referred via the scheme met with members of Blanchards Bailey’s thirty two strong, specialist private client team, to complete their Wills and In lieu of paying a fee to their solicitors, clients donated £120 or £180 to Weldmar Hospicecare and some left a legacy in their Will to Weldmar.
Following a recent update from Weldmar it has been confirmed that, once realised, the work carried out by Blanchards Bailey will result in donations of between £3,600 – £5,400 to Weldmar.
Support for Dorset adults with a life limiting illness Sarah Balchin, Weldmar Hospicecare’s Legacy, In Memory and Trust Fundraiser said; “We cannot thank Blanchards Bailey LLP enough for all their proactive support. Our Make A Will Month has seen a very successful third year, especially at this difficult time with the continuing Covid-19 pandemic. Thank you also to everyone who booked an appointment and made a donation to Weldmar. All the donations received, and the gifts left for us in Wills, will allow us to continue caring for adults in Dorset who have a life limiting illness, and supporting their loved ones too, with all of our services provided for free.” Jerome Dodge, Head of the Private Client Department at BBLLP added; “Blanchards Bailey are keen supporters of local charity endeavours. Although we tend to focus on fundraising for a specific nominated charity each year, when we are approached by a charity and are able to help, we are always happy to do our bit. We were delighted to be involved in Weldmar’s Make a Will Month once again.”.
Throughout the three years of the Weldmar Hospicecare Make a Will Month, the scheme has raised over £30,000 of donations for the charity which provides free vital end of life care for people living in Dorset who need specialist support.
If you would like to speak with our private client department about creating a new Will or updating a current Will, please contact Jerome Dodge, Head of Blanchards Bailey’s Private Client department, on 01258 459 361.
Join us to be part of the unfolding racing story of all our young racehorses: helping shape their futures from birth and following their progress on the track.
Part-time or full-time days available for a Stud Hand – to join existing, dedicated team, immediate start and initially to the end of May. Part-time days Friday and Saturday or full-time days Tuesday to Saturday (would consider 3 or 4 days part-time also but must include Friday and Saturday).
‘Normal’ working hours and great conditions, a genuine 8am-5pm working day for yard work, with a half hour coffee break, a one-hour lunch break and paid holiday. Full-time staff work a five day week with one weekend day off every week.
The job involves working with well-mannered (mostly ) broodmares and foals on the ground – leading in and out, mucking out, feeding, prepping for sales and assisting with stud maintenance.
We are a mares’ only stud with high standards, breeding top quality, champion racehorses and our existing team enjoy following the careers of the foals and youngstock they have helped raise.
Some previous experience with horses required – main criteria though is you are physically fit and willing to fit in with, and become part of our enthusiastic, happy team. We are easy to get to, in Glanvilles Wootton, five miles south of Sherborne – we’re even on the Dorchester/Sherborne bus route if that helps.
Please email [email protected] or call Doug Procter on 07974 314262 to discuss.
Find out more about us by reading the BV Magazine October to February online issues theblackmorevale.co.uk.
The centre of Stur is an often-overlooked and undervalued asset in the oldest part of town, says Pauline Batstone.
The Boutique is part of the Market Cross shopping area, and it’s a great place for browsing. In Beads with a Twist there’s always a new find, defintely the place for jewellery to go with your new outfit. There are few people who can walk past Daisy Delbridge’s
without turning to breathe in the beauty of the florist shop – why not step in and treat yourself? On the opposite corner, a potter around Agnes and Vera’s is a must – they are always a go-to if you’re hunting for an unusual gift.
–Agnes & Vera (far right) is a great place for gift buying. Next door is Joshua’s coffee shop, the blue building is Is Shin takeaway, and the thatched building is the White Hart Alehouse – Image Courtenay Hitchcock
If you have a little longer, when was the last time you stopped by the museum? It’s a fascinating place, filled with stories and the history of the places you walk past every day.
On for some clothes shopping in Gallery One, and of course no book lover can resist stepping into the hidden bookshop round the corner. Don’t be deceived by the tiny window of Stour Bookshop, it’s a positive Tardis. It’s always best to finish up with a coffee – try Joshua’s or Sweet Pea (or something stronger in The White Hart Alehouse…) For gentlemen there is also the opportunity for a spruce up at Oli Barbers or ladies step round to the car park side for a relaxing pamper at Enzos.
Sweet Pea is a perfect stop for refreshments, and the next building along is the tardis of Stour Books. Image Courtenay Hitchcock
The huge success of the two community charity shops means we can stage many exciting events this year, says Pauline Batstone. Some of the money raised from the sale of your pre- loved goods in The Emporium and The Boutique goes towards organising events for residents to enjoy and to bring new shoppers into town.
Far left is the black shop front of Beads with a Twist. In the middle is the Boutique, and then on the right is the always lovely florist’s shop Daisy Delbridge. Image Courtenay Hitchcock
This is what that diary of events is beginning to look like – and we will publish updates as events are confirmed.
Each first Saturday in the month (providing the weather’s not forecast to be awful!) the car enthusiasts bring their pride and joy to admire and swap stories in the Station Road Car Park. Anyone can come along – we have cars and bikes from modern to vintage. It’s very informal, no attendance fee, parking is free and we’re a friendly welcoming bunch!
The public liability insurance is paid for by The Community Benefit Society.
On 1st March we plan to hold our first Pancake Day event; ‘Races in The Rec’ at 2p.m. – pancakes supplied, but bring your own frying pans!
Mothering Sunday is 27th March is a good reason to buy flowers, chocolates and gifts
Easter events:
Good Friday, 15th April, a service will be held at the Cross in the Market Place, possibly followed by Hot Cross Buns Easter Saturday, 16th April, The Mill will be milling Easter Sunday, 12 noon onwards. An Easter Egg Hunt around the town Easter Monday, 12 noon, an Easter Bonnet Parade from the Church Hall to the Railway Gardens.
7th May A Wedding Fair held around the businesses in the Town, more details to follow.
2nd to 5th June
The Platinum Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend – details are still being discussed by The Town Council and the Community Benefit Society so more details to follow, but; • Thursday 2nd – Beacon
Lighting Railway Gardens • Friday to Sunday – The Exchange Real Ale and Cider
Festival • Saturday 4th June – Car Enthusiasts Meet in Station Road Car Park • Craft Market at The Exchange • Anonymous Travelling Market in Station Road and the
Market Place • Garden Fair in The Railway Gardens • Sunday 5th June – 12.00 to
3.00 p.m. The Big Lunch and Fancy Dress Parade in The Railway Gardens.
13th to 19th June
Sturminster Newton Literary Festival – includes various events including a Victorian Fete in the Railway Gardens on the afternoon of Saturday 18th.
July 1st to 3rd – the Boogie Woogie Festival hope to be back
20th to 29th August – SturBuzz; it’s all about bees and sustainability and fun – with a fancy dress parade on Sunday 29th (your best bee costume)
And then of course it’s the Cheese Fair on the 10th and 11th of September, there may be something about the Queen’s Green Canopy in October, and then we are back to Christmas again… I’m feeling tired already!
Plans for old bank to be new business space supporting local producers and sellers
Tim Robins is leading on an idea to see if the former NatWest building can be reinvented as a shopping destination – bringing more people into the town to our shops and cafes. The proposal is to offer customer-facing, exhibition-style space, six days a week, for people just setting out in business, selling good quality items from the Blackmore Vale. Hopefully this will provide useful space and support to new businesses, and also create a changing, ever-more-interesting shopping experience for both residents and visitors to the town (if you are interested in more details on this, please contact [email protected])
An exciting opportunity to join the strong team at Milborne Port Primary School and shape the future of our early years provision.
The school governors are looking to appoint a Pre-School Manager at The Beeches Pre-School from September 2022, or earlier by arrangement.
Applicants must be committed to creating an exceptional learning environment that offers the best for every child and meets all the aims of Milborne Port Primary School. There will be a strong focus on Communication and Language, Literacy and Outdoor Learning.
Please contact the School Business Manager Claire Brown on:
All completed applications should be returned to the school email address above.
Milborne Port Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share in this commitment.
This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check and medical clearance.
Local family brewers Hall & Woodhouse raised over £126,000 through various partnerships over the last charity year.
Jon Mead completed a gruelling challenge to cycle to each of Hall & Woodhouse’s 50 pubs in Dorset to raise vital funds for Dorset Mind.
The money raised in 2021 has brought the company’s total fundraising figure over the past decade to a staggering £1,103,000.
Lucinda Gray, Community Relationships Manager at Hall & Woodhouse, said: “We could not be prouder of the incredible efforts shown by our team and what they have collectively achieved over the past charity year. To be able to take the total money raised in the last decade to over £1million is an extraordinary milestone, and I thank all our team for their ambition and dedication to make this happen.”
Pub Charities
A Guinness World Record- breaking pub quiz, and a challenging group paddleboarding excursion were just some of the events and activities arranged by pubs across the south to raise money for their chosen charity partners. In October 2020 Hall & Woodhouse had launched its local ‘pub charity partnerships’, and now each Managed House team and the team based at the brewery select their own charity partner to support within their local community.
£1,867 was raised for Dorset Mind by Hall & Woodhouse team member Jon Mead, by cycling to each of the company’s 50 pubs in Dorset. Jon cycled over 350km over the course of his challenge, which took over 19 hours to complete. The Crown Hotel in Blandford raised £1,300 for the Blandford Foodbank by hosting a night of live music with Meatloaf tribute act, Meet Loaf, performing the band’s greatest hits. Additionally, almost £18,000 was collected through Hall & Woodhouse’s charity dish initiative, which can be found on the menu at all its Managed Houses. The Steak and Tanglefoot Ale Pie proved to be a popular dish with 25p from each pie bought going straight to the pub’s chosen charity partner. Lucinda Gray added: “we are constantly looking for new ways to reach out to those who need our support. Our pub teams have faced many challenges over the last few years and yet they continued to prioritise charity fundraising activities and our guests have responded generously in support. “Our teams are excitedly making plans with their charity partners for the year ahead to ensure we raise even more money in 2022. Activities include the return of our own Dorset Beer Festival to be held at the brewery on Saturday 25th June with all profits from this event going to Dorset Mind.”
) broodmares and foals on the ground – leading in and out, mucking out, feeding, prepping for sales and assisting with stud maintenance.
