dorchester issue no. 8 march-april 2014 voice issue!...

Arts & crafts, healthy living, alternative therapies, what’s on

Issue No. 8 March-April 2014SPRING

Voice first anniversary issue!Voice

Dorchester

Volunteers prepare for Community

Play

£2m Charles Street subsidy slammed

Also serving local villages

Featuring Gig Guide and Out & About – full local listingsSupporting Dorchester’s independent retailers, craftspeople and practitioners

Your independent community magazine

3www.dorchestervoice.co.uk Dorchester Voice

High-tech parking scheme set to start

Community News

£2m Charles Street subsidy under fireDorchester campaigner Alistair Chisholm has hit out at plans by West Dorset District Council to subsidise the planned Charles Street shopping centre develop-ment to the tune of £2 million.

He says it is wrong for the council to underwrite the devel-opment when other projects such as Brewery Square have gone ahead without any public money.

The move follows the earlier decision by the council to pick up the tab for preliminary works, in-cluding the removal and rebuild-ing of the Community Church, at a cost of another £2 million.

“I do not believe this huge expenditure to be in the best interests of the people of West Dorset,” said Cllr Chisholm.

“£4 million of hard-working people’s council tax could and should have been spent on 40-50 affordable homes.

“The district council’s gift of this valuable town centre site should have been the beginning and the end of its involvement in the Charles Street project.

“The two other developers in the county town – the Duchy at Poundbury and the developers of Brewery Square – have managed to deliver both their develop-ments in the teeth of a howling economic gale and without a penny of precious public money.

“All this is bad enough, but unfortunately there’s more. The district council is almost certain to agree to the wishes of Simons [the Charles Street developers] to remove the 14 affordable housing units in phase 2 and replace them with private market housing units.

“What an appalling example for your local authority to set.”

However, Cllr Robert Gould, leader of West Dorset District

Council, said the redevelopment of the site, bringing new, bigger Marks & Spencer and Waitrose stores, would create around 600 new jobs and provide a real boost to the wider local economy.

“The benefits of the scheme are significant for the local area but unfortunately the poor economic climate of recent years has caused progress to stall,” said Cllr Gould.

“Councillors agreed to use capital reserves to underwrite the financial viability gap to help give the developer confidence to take the scheme forward.

“By agreeing to underwrite the scheme, the council has also been able to keep to the original plan for two basement levels of parking, providing extra parking.”

The council has also promised a further public consultation exercise.

A revolutionary new parking scheme is set to go ahead in Dorchester within the next few weeks.

The high-tech, pay-on-exit scheme should be in place in Dorchester’s Wollaston Field car park soon after Easter, and will use number-plate-recog-nition cameras to monitor parking.

Drivers will have the option of either paying their parking dues when they leave – using cash or cards – or, if they sign up for an online account, they will be automatically billed in a similar way to the London Congestion Charge.

There will also be a short period of grace on entering the car park, in case drivers have trouble finding a space.

Dorchester Business Improvement District (BID) director Phil Gordon said the move, funded by the BID from the business levy, would revolutionise parking in the town centre.

“Every year traders lose thousands of pounds in lost sales because of people coming into town to shop and then running out of time on their prepaid ticket,” he said.

It is hoped an electronic version of the shopper’s discount will also be rolled out at the car park. Shoppers currently get a 50p discount in partici-pating stores by presenting their parking voucher.

While this will not be immediately available in Wollaston Field, it will be implemented as soon as possible, with drivers entering a four-digit code given to them by storekeepers. The existing voucher system will continue at other car parks.

Meanwhile Mr Gordon has secured the use of a private car park in Colliton Street for BID levy payers on a first-come, first-served basis. Anyone wishing to go on the waiting list should email [email protected].

4 March-April 2014Dorchester Voice

The Prince of Wales opens the new school at Fordington in 1928

For many decades, on the third Saturday in March, Old Hardyeans have met together for their annual reunion dinner, when the old boys of Hardye’s School and Dorchester Grammar School remember their schooldays and talk of old times.

In recent times, the annual dinner has been at the modern Thomas Hardye School, this year on Saturday, 15 March at 7pm, with a reception hosted by president Peter Foster. The guest speaker is Garry Batt, chairman of the governors at Thomas Hardye School and a local auctioneer at Duke’s.

“We know some Old Hardyeans are coming to the reunion dinner from other parts of the UK, but it would be good to attract more local old boys from Hardye’s School,” says Old Hardyeans Sec-retary Michel Hooper-Immins, who studied at the Culliford Road school from 1958 to 1965.

“Some of our older members were at Dorchester Grammar School in the war years and they mingle happily with the young students of Thomas Hardye School. It’s a very happy event and we would appeal for more local old boys to join us on 15 March.”

Old Hardyeans set for annual reunion

Michel Hooper-Immins says an announcement will be made at the dinner about the Colin Lucas Memorial Fund, a tribute to the Old Hardyeans’ late chairman, who passed away in August.

The cost of the three-course annual reunion dinner is £21. Enquiries should be made to Chair-man Godfrey Lancashire at [email protected] or telephone 01308 485688.

Next year, the annual dinner moves to the King’s Arms Hotel in Dorchester, again on the third Satur-day in March 2015, and will mark the 110th anni-versary of the founding of the old boys’ association in 1905. Old Hardyeans meet at the King’s Arms every last Thursday of the month for lunch.

Founded in 1905 as the Old Grammarians, the Old Hardyeans – also known as the Hardyeans Club – is one of the most successful old school as-sociations in the county, bringing together the old boys of Dorchester Grammar School and Hardye’s School, plus ex-students of the modern Thomas Hardye School. In the times of Queen Elizabeth I, it was Thomas Hardye [with a final ‘e’] de-scribed as an yeoman of Frampton, who endowed Dorchester Grammar School in 1569.

Hardye’s shopping arcade today stands on the site. The grammar school moved to Culliford Road in 1928 and was renamed Hardye’s School in 1954. The new Thomas Hardye School in Queen’s Avenue opened in 1992, encompassing the best traditions of the two previous schools – and admit-ting girls for the first time since 1569.

Writer Thomas Hardy – no relation to the founder – who lived at nearby Max Gate, laid the foundation stone of Hardye’s School in 1927.


More than 1,300 ale lovers sampled the delights on offer at the Dorchester Beerex over the two days of the annual

festival at the Corn Exchange and raised more than £11,000 for charity.

As well as supporting the local breweries in Dorset, beers came from the length and breadth of the British Isles, including the Duke IPA from the Highland Brewery in the Orkney Islands, which was awarded the title of Champion Beer of the Festival, with the new brewery in Dorset, Gyle 59, coming 2nd with its 5.3% IPA. The strongest beer of the weekend was specially brewed for the event – Big Bang at 8.5%, from the main sponsors of Beerex, the Piddle Brewery.

The main charity this year is Gully’s Place, a special unit coming to Dorset County Hospital that will provide a private area for a family with a child receiving palliative end-of-life care. The unit will be built within the existing children’s ward at the hospital. The raffle raised over £1,700 for RTCW (Round Table Children’s wish), that grants wishes for seriously ill children.

The Beerex organisers, West Dorset CAMRA and Dorchester Round Table, are again indebted to the companies and individuals that support the event every year either by sponsoring a bar-rel or donating a raffle prize.

Ellis Ford, chairman of Dorchester Beerex 2014, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone that helps to make this event possible, and also Dorchester Ellipse for catering for everyone’s needs.”

Beer festival raises £11,000 for charity

Drinkers celebrate at the Dorchester Beerex


If you want to pop out and do some shopping, but don’t want the stress of trying to park in the town centre, then why not try out the shops in and around Damers Road?

The little parade of shops offers free on-street parking just round the corner in Dagmar Road and is ideal for that quick visit without having to deal with the traffic.

Businesses include Profile Hair run by Tracy Baker, with its own loyalty scheme offering up to 10% discounts. Profile also offers a 5% discount for NHS staff and the over 60s, and a 10% dis-counts for students, with late-night opening on Tuesdays to 7pm and Fridays to 8pm on request.

Meanwhile the New Ghurka Nepalese and In-dian restaurant has reopened under new manage-ment and offers sumptuous cuisine at great prices.

And if you want to browse for some period furniture, vintage chinaware or garden ornaments, why not drop into the Attic Room.

Plenty to see and do in Damers Road

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Rethink on plans for one-way system

Why not get crafty and try a bead workshop?Do you enjoy making jewellery or would you like to learn how to do it? Are you stuck for beads and other accessories?

Roger and Louise Davies from the Half Moon Bead Shop are on hand to help every step of the way, with a wide range of beads, and regular courses so that you can learn this fascinating craft.

Roger and Louise opened the Half Moon Bead Shop on Bridport Road, Poundbury in November 2010 as a result of Roger being made redundant from his engineering job. Louise had been beading as a hobby for more than 20 years and had always dreamed of running a craft shop, so they decided to open their new venture.

The Half Moon Bead Shop has grown consider-ably since its humble beginnings and there is also an online shop, with new stock arriving all the time.

The shop stocks a large range of beads, find-ing and tools, including seed beads, glass beads, threads and cords, lots of different clasps and much more. There are workshops most Thursday after-noons (2.30pm – 5.30pm) and Saturday mornings (10am – 1pm). Workshops cost £10 per session and you then pay for any beads used. Tea and coffee is provided. The workshops are changed around on a

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quarterly basis. All active workshops can be found on our website (www.thehalfmoonbeadshop.com) or in the shop.

Why not pop in and enjoy the relaxed atmos-phere, or like us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/Thehalfmoonbeadshop) to be kept up to date with new stock and news.

The controversial proposed new Dorchester one-way system is being delayed by up to a year to look in more detail at residents’ concerns.

Following recommendations put to a meeting of Dorset County Council’s cabinet in February, the scheme will be heavily revised.

Engineers and officers will come up with a new scheme, taking into consideration the sugges-tions and concerns of residents. It is likely that this further look at the plans will take until September to finalise. Following this, traffic modelling and air-quality tests will take place and another report will be put forward to cabinet in October.

The main areas of concern highlighted by the survey are Prince’s Street, Great Western Road, North Square, Colliton Street, Charminster and north Dorchester, Cornwall Road, Victoria Road, the Borough Gardens, Southgate (The Junction), and Top o’ Town.

Some of the suggested alternatives include:�A bus contra-flow at the top of High West Street;�Great Western Road to flow one way westwards;�Possible creation of a northern bypass to link Stinsford roundabout with the A37 road to Yeovil;�A large one-way gyratory;�To make no changes at North Square;�Link across Dorchester market site (Fairfield) from Weymouth Avenue to Maumbury Road north;�Loading and HGV bans as well as traffic-light synchronisation on High East and High West streets, together with various measures to reduce the number of vehicles using that road;�An enhanced park-and-ride scheme.

By September, depending on traffic and air-quality results, there will either be a viable scheme within budget, or a viable scheme with request for additional funds. If there is still a viable scheme, further consultation will take place.


Volunteers are already hard at work pro-ducing clothing, scenery and props for Dorchester’s sixth Community Play, Drum-

mer Hodge, which is being staged at the beginning of April.

The play has been specially written for the local cast by Rupert Creed, who also wrote Dorchester’s fourth community play, Fire from Heaven, with music by Tim Laycock.

Drummer Hodge is a spectacular multi-stage promenade performance where the audience experience the drama as it happens around them. The play combines poetry by Thomas Hardy, a com-munity orchestra, a percussion band, and a cast of more than 100 performers.

Set at the time of the Boer War, the play tells the tale of the Hodge family and the Dorchester lad – based on Drummer Hodge in Thomas Hardy’s poem – who joins up to fight in the South African War. Will Hodge has been inspired by the bravery of Sam Vickery, the Dorset Regiment’s only winner of the Victoria Cross.

Back home the early 1900s town is growing. The Pope family has built the new Eldridge Pope brewery and Alfred Pope is building housing estates around Dorchester – the equivalent of today’s Poundbury. Modernity is arriving in the form of bicycles, cars and the Dorchester Steam Laundry. There is even a chance women might get the vote!

The play will take place ‘in the round’ at the Thomas Hardye School theatre, with the audience standing on the set and the actors walking among

Volunteers prepare for

Martin Cree, who plays his great-grandfather Alfred Pope in the play

Designer Dawn Allsopp with Leila Simon

them, including Dorchester town crier Alistair Chisholm, who will play Thomas Hardy.

Some of the cast are even playing their own grandparents. Among them is Martin Cree, a member of the Eldridge Pope family, who plays his great-grandfather Alfred Pope.

Theatre designer Dawn Allsopp is creating an evocative set that echoes the Borough Gardens and the lives of both rich and poor. Elegant costumes of the Edwardian age are being created by Dawn, with Sara Hope and a team of local volunteers.

Rupert Creed, who also directs the play, says: “As the clocks chime midnight Dorchester is embracing the new age with confidence and pride. The old market town is expanding, trade is booming, opportunity is there for all. For young women like Hilda Pope there is the chance to play a role in society beyond that of wife and mother.

“For working women like Sara Hodge there is the chance to build a better future for her eldest son Will. And for women


Martin Cree, a direc-tor of Eldridge Pope, makes a presentation to Judi Dench and Tim Pigott-Smith, who starred in the National Theatre version of Entertain-ing Strangers, the first Dorchester Community Play in 1987. Eldridge Pope was the main sponsor of the first Dorchester Community Play

Mary Foskett, Leila Simon and Sue McGarel hard at work

A model of the set for the play, in which actors will mingle with the audience

like Gertrude Uffen there is the passion for greater social justice.

“On that first day of the 20th century the call goes out for volunteers to fight in the Boer War in South Africa. The town signs up with patriotic pride as men and women from all classes sup-port this righteous war of honour.

“But as the year comes to a close there are hard choices to make and difficult truths to confront. Wind forward to the summer of 1914 and the nation bangs the drum once again for war. As the town’s famous writer Thomas Hardy observes, time has a habit of mocking us all.

“Drummer Hodge is a story from the past that resonates today. A compelling drama that explores attitudes to conflict and courage, and what happens to families who sign up for a war where honour and shame collide. It is also a story about women who rebel – and what happens when you cycle to Swanage in a pair of bloomers!”

Performances are at 7.15pm from Tuesday 1 April to Saturday 12 April. Tickets are available from the Play Office in the Old County Library, Colliton Park, Dorchester, tel. 01305 228269, and online at www.dorsetcom-munityplay.org.uk.

sixth Community Play


Established in 1978, Down to Earth in Princes Street is an independent health and wholefood shop that many people in the Dorchester area grew up with and return to faithfully, even if they move away from the area.

Why? Because it is a unique little oasis of natu-ral and organic products, with an old fashioned soul and an aroma that invokes a feel-good factor as you walk in the door.

Whether you are looking for a few grammes of herbs and spices, a bulk-buy of everyday basics – flour, oats, grains etc; a branded product for a dietary need or an unusual ingredient for a specific recipe, the stock range is extensive.

Purchases are competitively priced and eco-nomical because in most cases you buy only what you need. Refills of products such as organic cider vinegar in your own bottle or bringing in your own canisters cut down on packaging, making a win-win situation for your pocket and your waste management.

Healthy wholefoods at Down to Earth

Down to Earth in Princes Street

When a product is unavailable, an order can be made and promptly delivered.

Our philosophy is ‘Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food’ (Hippocrates 460-377BC). It is not a shop that carries many supple-ments, the focus being on a balanced lifestyle. Suggestions and recipes relating to ingredients are readily shared.

Stock is sourced as ethically as possible, locally, organically and Fairtrade where available. Fresh vegetables and eggs are delivered weekly.

With the home and environment in mind, Ecov-er is stocked and refills are available for a range of products, saving on packaging and money.

Alice Higgins is one of those people who grew up as a customer at Down to Earth in the early 1980s.

When the opportunity to take over the busi-ness arose last February she jumped at the chance and will be pleased to welcome you in the door between the hours of 9.30 and 5.30 weekdays or 9.30-2pm Saturday. Alternatively keep up to date with stocks, recipes and promotions via Facebook or the website (downtoearthdorset.com).

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Folklore & Heritage

Of St George, dragons and garters…

On April 23 England cel-ebrates its patron saint, St George.

George was born in Lydda, Pal-estine, around AD280. In legend, he famously rescued the beautiful Princess Sabra from a dragon which was terrorising the city of Silene in Libya.

He killed the dragon and converted the pagans of Silene to Christianity – the dragon motif of-ten represents Satan, or paganism in early Christian iconography. St Michael is also often depicted as a dragon-slayer, and in Britain many churches dedicated to him are on hilltops formerly sacred to pagans.

George was a Roman soldier, but when he zealously destroyed the shrine of the Roman god Bacchus in his home town, he was imprisoned and tortured, and eventually executed on 23 April 303 after he refused to renounce his faith, thus becoming a Chris-tian martyr.

A chapel, which was later claimed to have been dedicated to St George was built over the tomb in Lydda, during the reign of the Emperor Constantine (306-7). After the First Crusade a new church was built and his heart was removed from the tomb, brought to England and presented to King Henry V.

The chivalric Order of the Knights of St George was founded in 1201, and St George became the patron saint of England. The emblem of the order is the garter, and dates from 1348 when Edward III intervened to save the

embarrassment of the Duchess of Salisbury, whose blue ribbon garter had fallen to the ground. He tied it around his own knee and cried the now famous ‘Honi soit qui mal y pense’, which translates as ‘shame upon him who thinks evil upon it’. The king then instigated the Order of the Garter, with the blue ribbon as its badge of honour, first awarded a year later on St George’s Day.

Blue was said to be the saint’s colour, and there was a custom, rarely followed these days, of wearing bluebells on St George’s Day, giving the bluebell a claim to being England’s national flower, rather than the rose.

A legend arose that St George miraculously came to the aid of William Belet, probably at the battle of Dorylatum in 1097, helping the crusaders to defeat the Saracen army. This miracle

is commemorated in the stone tympanum above the door in St George’s Church in Fordington. The carving was probably paid for by Belet himself, who on re-turning from the Holy Land, was awarded the manor of Fordington by William the Conqueror.

The fine early-medieval sculp-ture is well preserved, due to the later addition of the porch, which has sheltered it. It is thought to be among the earliest surviving images of the saint.

St George is also commemorat-ed throughout Britain as the hero of numerous mumming plays, usually performed around Christ-mas. These plays seem to have emerged in the 18th century. St George is usually introduced by Father Christmas; he then fights and kills a Turkish Knight, often along with several other chal-lengers. The remorseful saint then calls for a doctor who revives the slain with a potion.

Thomas Hardy used part of a mumming play in The Return of the Native, and later, using a mummers’ script from Symonds-bury, wrote a whole play for a stage production of the novel. On Boxing Day 1920 Florence Hardy wrote:

‘At the party (of the mummers etc) last night he was so gay – & one of them said to me that he had never seen him so young and happy and excited. He is now – this afternoon – writing a poem with great spirit: always a sign of well-being with him.’

� St George’s Day Fair, Fording-ton – see p24.

A 14th century Byzantine icon of St George

By Jerry Bird


Hidden Dorchester

Castle where crown jewels were kept!

Visitors to Dorchester, having become aware of the rather striking stylised

stone castle on the town’s coat of arms, often assume that the ‘Keep’ in Bridport Road, which it vaguely resembles, is Dorches-ter’s historic castle.

The Keep, now the Military Museum, was formerly a part of the town’s Victorian barracks. Dorchester’s real medieval castle – though the building itself has now vanished – has a rather more interesting history.

Castle Mound, behind High West Street, is currently occu-pied by the prison, which closed last year.

Excavations have proved the existence of buildings, possibly of military purpose, dating from the mid first century AD.

The site was probably little used in the Dark Ages, as the focus of Saxon Dorchester was by then Fordington, where a royal residence was used during the celebration of Christmas festivals.

The medieval castle was built by William the Conqueror, prob-ably in the 1080s, to subdue the local populace, but although it is known to have been strength-ened in 1137, the earliest known surviving written records date from 1194, when Richard I ordered Hubert de Burgh, the Archbishop and Chancellor ‘to repair the King’s buildings at Dorchestre’.

Records show that its bound-ary enclosed roughly six acres, making it likely that it was of

the classic Norman motte and bailey design, with a stone keep on the mound, surrounded by a perimeter ‘curtain wall’ with defensive ditches, one of which was excavated where the prison car-park is now.

The castle was never used for military purposes, but became one of the ‘king’s houses’ with a chapel, stables, kennels for ‘boar hounds’, falconry and pigeon houses, and even a vivarium and gardens. From time to time, it appears the crown jewels were stored in the castle, as they are recorded as having been removed in October 1214.

In 1290 the castle was surplus to Edward III’s requirements and he sold it to John Gervase of Bridport.

Twenty years later Sir John gifted the castle to the Franciscan order, who dismantled the build-ings to construct their friary, the site of which has never been sat-isfactorily proven, but which is commemorated in the names of Friary Lane and Friary Crescent.

Dorchester was fortified and garrisoned at the begin-

ning of the Civil War, and both Maumbury Rings and the Castle Mound were re-used, with a fortlet established on the site of the old castle, the earthworks for which are still plainly visible in Hutchin’s plan of 1777.

The new county jail was built on the site between 1789 and 1795, and during its construc-tion a number of tunnels were discovered, with one long one leading to a field near Charles Street. Another led from the river to the Castle Well, from which water was drawn by a treadmill.

This latter was re-used for a while, but was, like the others, later filled in to prevent it being used by prisoners as a possible escape route.

The gaol was extended in the 1850s, at which time Roman and medieval masonry were found, including the foundations of the Norman great hall with its pillars of Portesham stone.

The prison, now empty, has obscured all remains of the once luxurious medieval castle, but the Dorchester coat of arms, being based on the design of the borough seal from the 14th century, barely 100 years after the castle fell into disuse, may at least give a clue as to what it once looked like.

The Great Western Railway named one of its Castle class express locomotives Dorchester Castle in 1925, and for many years Hornby Dublo produced a popular model of the engine, ensuring that the real castle lived on, at least in the imaginations of a generation or so of schoolboys!

Dorchester’s coat of arms, based on the 14th century borough seal

By Jerry Bird


Fond memories of Fordington in the 40s

Fordington, often regarded as Dorchester’s ‘poor relation’, was once an important Saxon settlement adjacent to the remnants of Roman

Durnovaria. It declined until, by the 18th century, it was a suburban slum on the edge of a resurgent Dorchester, described by Thomas Hardy in The Mayor of Casterbridge as ‘the mildewed leaf in the flourishing Casterbridge plant’.

David Forrester’s family settled in Dorchester after the Second World War, and his mother ran Forrester’s Stores in Fordington. Still relatively poor in the 1940s and 50s, its inhabitants were regarded with suspicion by Dorchester residents.

The author recalls that people would not only come to shop but also to pay into the Christmas Club, or in an emergency to use the telephone, as it had the only connection in the district. After the rise of the supermarkets, local businesses folded – For-rester’s Stores closing in 1971.

The author records his schooldays, along with his

enthusiasm for football, which caused him to sneak off from classes on one occasion to watch the ‘Magpies’ – a misdemeanour for which he ultimately escaped punishment by demonstrating his exceptional singing voice at an end-of-term carol service.

Such reminiscences are peppered with historical snippets concerning the communities of Fordington and Dorchester, and the book is illustrated with many fascinating, hitherto unpublished photo-graphs, several credited to Mill St Housing Society; clearly, the author has been able to enthuse the local community with his writing project, and the result is a very worthwhile contribution to the social history of Dorchester. Recommended. Jerry BirdFordington Remembered by David J ForresterRoving Press £6.99ISBN 978-1-906651-237

Literary Corner


Health & Wellbeing

The changing role of the pharmacy

The traditional role of community pharmacy has been expanding gradually towards pa-tient services, healthy lifestyle support and

integrated care for patients – and these trends have accelerated since the major changes made to the NHS last April.

In Dorset, pharmacies are now the main thrust of smoking cessation support, sponsored by Public Health Dorset. And the majority of NHS Health-checks are conducted in pharmacies, with at-risk patients referred to their GP for follow-up.

Easy access to pharmacists and staff makes com-munity pharmacy the first port of call for people looking for all sorts of advice and support.

Recognising this, the NHS has recently launched a Call to Action consultation. A similar activity was conducted for GPs in 2013. It aims to stimulate de-bate and feedback from local communities, patient

Pharmacists now offer a much wider service

By Robin Mitchell

groups, and healthcare professionals, to shape the future scope of services available from pharmacies.

Four areas are being looked at in particular:� Better use of medicines, for example continuous and integrated support for people with long-term conditions such as asthma and diabetes to improve disease management and their quality of life;� Supporting people to live healthier lives. This can be preventative, such as flu vaccinations, or responsive, such as smoking cessation, weight management, or alcohol advice.�Supporting people to self-care, expanding on pharmacies’ traditional role to help treat minor in-juries and illnesses, perhaps with more structured services (this could free up hard-pressed GP and A&E capacity).�Supporting people to live independently, to build on existing capabilities such as home deliv-ery, repeat prescriptions management and ‘trays’, for example home-based medicines reviews and better coordination with GPs, nurses and carers to support vulnerable patients living at home.

The Call to Action runs throughout March. So why not make a point of chatting with your friendly phar-macist next time you visit? They will welcome your ideas on how they can improve community care.Robin Mitchell is the pharmacist at Victoria Park Pharmacy, 14 Maud Road, Dorchester DT1 2LW


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Iron Age hill-forts are perhaps Britain’s greatest legacy from the Celtic tribes that occupied these

islands in pre-Roman times. When reading the information

panel at Poundbury hill-fort a few years ago I was struck by the fact that in several cases in the West Country at least, pagan temples had been constructed within ramparts such as these in the late fourth century, including Cadbury Castle in Somerset, Old Sarum near Salisbury, and, of course, Maiden Castle.

It would appear that Romanised Britons were constructing pagan temples not only at a time when the Roman Empire was supposed to have been Christianised, but also in places that were once thriv-ing communities but which had been long abandoned in favour of walled towns on the Roman pattern.

It seemed that my understanding of Roman and early Christian his-tory of Britain, based as it was on schoolbooks of the 1960s was pat-ently inadequate. Research using more modern texts revealed a far more complicated and interesting

history than I had expected. Mid-fourth-century Britain had been under Roman rule for 300 years. The myriad warlike tribes that once claimed territories in these islands had been politically and militarily subdued, and the country was divided into five provinces admin-istered from Rome by provincial governors, occasionally with the help of large garrisons of soldiers.

Generally, the conquering Romans showed tolerance towards the religions of the conquered, though in Britain the druids were regarded as a subversive influ-ence, and on Anglesey, at least, they were ruthlessly eliminated – though this probably had more to do with their secular political influence.

Far from being repressed, Brit-ish religious cults were actively encouraged and native gods were frequently conflated with those of Rome, a process known as syncretism. Thus, in Bath, known to the Romans as Aquae Sulis (the waters of the pagan goddess Sulis), a massive temple was erected to

Sulis-Minerva, who presided over the sacred hot spring that still gushes from the earth today.

Britons continued to honour the genii loci (spirits of place) of wells, springs and groves, and their shrines were by no means ignored. Professor Ronald Hutton, in his book Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles, describes how Iron Age religious practice devel-oped under Roman administration:

‘It was a development rather than a break. Every known pre-Ro-man shrine in England was rebuilt as a Romano-British temple unless the settlement which it served was destroyed by conquest.’

Archaeologist Miranda Green points out that:

‘Many lower class rural Celts, at any rate in North and West Britain, were probably not Latin speakers […] and one would expect their cults and beliefs to have been little altered by the presence of Rome.’

Thus Celtic deities were vener-ated alongside Roman ones at re-built shrines, which in some cases had been places of worship since the Bronze Age or earlier. British

Uncovering the story of Maiden Castle’s pagan past

An 18th century plan of Maiden Castle

The immense size of Maiden Castle can be truly appreciated from the air

By Jerry Bird


pagan religion gradually became culturally Roman while remaining ethnically Celtic.

This state of affairs began to change in the fourth century, with the arrival of Christianity. By AD340 there is evidence that chapels and churches were replacing some pagan shrines, and Christian burials in east-west alignment and without grave goods started to become more frequent. Around this time, wealthy Roman-ised Britons began to incorporate Christian iconography into mosaics in their luxurious villas – examples in Dorset can be found at Hinton St Mary and Frampton.

On the whole, evidence sug-gests that the rise of Christianity and the decline of pagan cults was slower in Britain than most other parts of the empire. In Rome, Christianity had begun to flourish and co-exist with pagan religion in the atmosphere of toleration that Constantine encouraged early in his reign. His sons, especially Constantius, took a harder line on paganism, banning sacrifices and implicitly endorsing the closing

and destruction of urban temples. Despite this, there is little evidence that this actually occurred to any great extent in Britain.

The destruction of British pagan temples and shrines did start to oc-cur around the middle of the fourth century, but this appears to have been due more to acts of zealous Christian individuals than official policy, as no literary evidence ex-ists for such policies in Britain.

However, after AD360 when the pagan Julian became emperor, there are clear signs of a pagan revival in Britain. The desecrated temple at Pagans Hill in Somerset was restored, as was the temple to Nodens at Lydney and a shrine at Caerwent. In Bath, the largely de-molished temple to Sulis-Minerva was partially restored and pagan worship resumed.

In Rome, Julian’s pagan revival went some way to restoring the Christian/pagan equilibrium, but Christianity had become too far entrenched within the state, and those pagans who still remained in public positions were too conservative in their outlook to instigate the complete restoration

of pagan religion which Julian had so hoped for.

Nevertheless, despite the short-ness of his reign, for the next 30 years there was a new-found con-fidence in pagan Roman society and successive rulers showed a renewed religious tolerance.

In Britain, it may well be that Julian’s anti-Christian stance was more important than his pro-paganism, and the tentative begin-nings of a Christian Church were simply anomalous in a country where paganism had always been strong. It has been suggested that a disillusionment with Christian-ity developed at a time when the economy was collapsing, towns and cities decaying, and law and order was in steep decline. In such a scenario the Christians’ strategy of gaining converts among the political classes to spread their influence throughout the land was bound to backfire to some degree.

While it is tempting to believe that the pagan Britons were made of sterner stuff than their Continen-tal counterparts, the truth must be that Britain was a relatively remote outpost of the empire, and the

Uncovering the story of Maiden Castle’s pagan past

The remains of the pagan temple on Maiden Castle

The immense size of Maiden Castle can be truly appreciated from the air


implementation of proclamations from Rome did rather depend on the praetorian prefects of Gaul re-sponsible for Britain at that time.

As most of them were pagans, and in any case generally had rather more pressing issues to deal with, paganism contin-ued relatively unscathed in Britain compared with Greece, for example, where according to Libanius, ‘no altar remained’.

Of the new temples built in rural locations at around this time, the best-known ex-ample is at Maiden Castle. A square Romano-Celtic tem-ple building and a priest’s house were constructed after AD367, close to a more ancient circular shrine.

The temple was excavated by Mortimer Wheeler in the1930s, and several inter-esting finds are displayed in the Dorset County Museum. Chief among these are a bronze plaque displaying an image of Minerva, a nude female figurine, and a unique bronze statue of a three-horned bull, with three bird-like creatures on its back with human faces. Minerva was often twinned with the British goddess Brigantia, while the bull may represent Tarvos Trigaranos, a god known to have been venerated in Gaul.

Later excavations have re-vealed another shrine at the east entrance to the fort, along with al-terations to the earthworks, and it has been suggested that this may indicate a new use for the area within the ramparts as a sacred enclosure or temple precinct.

Wheeler’s excavations were watched by hundreds of enthu-

siastic spectators, and among them was the Dorset writer John Cowper Powys, who provides us with a vivid description of how the finds were revealed to the public in Maiden Castle, his classic Dorchester-based novel published in 1936:

‘In the crowded interior of a little wooden shed… the overseer of Maiden Castle, assisted on this particular occasion by two uniformed police officers, was having all he could do to keep people from touching with their hands an object that rested on a rough wooden bench at the back of the hut. The small building was packed with people, most of them young, some of them passionately interested in the object before them, and all eager to propound their own especial theories as to the identity of this extraordinary thing.’

Thomas Hardy wrote a splendid short story, A Tryst at an Ancient Earthwork (1885), which tells a tale of illegal antiquarian treasure-hunting at Maiden Cas-tle. Hardy’s reluctant commenta-tor describes the furtive discovery of a Roman figurine:

‘He turns again to the trench, scrapes, feels, till from a corner he draws out a heavy lump – small image four or five inches high. We clean it as before. It is a statuette, apparently of gold, or, more probably, of bronze-gilt – a figure of Mercury, obviously, its head being surmounted with the petasus or winged hat, the usual ac-cessory of that deity.’

Although the illicit excava-tor is prevailed upon to re-inter his discoveries, the figurine is, much later, to be found among the deceased man’s effects. This was Hardy’s mischievous por-trayal of Edward Cunnington, the Victorian ‘barrow-digger’,

one of a breed whom Dorset archaeologist Charles Warne

dismissed in 1866 as ‘ham-fisted amateur diggers’ and desecrators of ‘hallowed monuments’.

It has been suggested that in some areas Christianity forced pagan cults to relocate shrines away from towns in rural loca-tions, but this was clearly not the case here; at Maiden Castle there is a suggested continuity of use of a sacred site.

Perhaps, as is so often the case with a ‘revivalist’ religion there was a fundamental desire to return to religious ‘roots’. Mai Dun, the principle stronghold of the Durotriges had been aban-

The three-horned bull statue found on the temple site at Maiden Castle

Excavations drew big crowds


doned since the first century, following the Roman campaign of AD43. It may be that the local pagan Celts took pride in reinstating their native religion in their erstwhile tribal capital, turning their backs on the Roman settlement of Durnovaria (Dorchester) that had usurped it.

In Britain, Julian gave impetus to a pagan revival that was different to, the rest of the empire. Theodo-sius’s decrees in 391 banning pagan worship were blatantly ignored, and there was no widespread compliance with the renewed imperial endorse-ment Christianity.

As Rome’s grip loosened politically, militarily and economically, the Celts reverted to their ancestral traditions. Many Roman towns were abandoned or, like Dorchester, shrank to a fraction of their original size.

However, it was not long before the Romano-Celtic temples were desecrated once more – this time by a new wave of pagan incomers less tolerant of native cults than the Romans had been – the Anglo-Saxons.

Christianity would have to wait another two cen-turies, until St Augustine began his mission, before conquering pagan Britain.


An historic £3.2 million signalling scheme enabling passenger trains to run from Swanage and Corfe Castle to the main line at Wareham – for the first time since 1972 – is almost complete.

The development comes on the first anniversary of a £1.47 million government grant to the volunteer-led steam railway to restore trains linking Swanage and Corfe Castle with the main London to Weymouth line.

Network Rail plans to commission its £32 million Poole to Wool re-signalling scheme – of which a £3.2 million link to the Swanage Railway is a part – in April.

Then, the Swanage Railway’s award-winning Victorian-style Corfe Castle signal box will be liaising with the Basingstoke signalling centre when trains run from Swanage to the national railway system.

Using equipment to simulate trains to and from Wareham, the training of volunteer signalmen at Corfe Castle has been completed. It is hoped to start a test passenger train service to Wareham during the latter half of 2015 – operating for 50 days during the first year and 90 days during the second.

Swanage Railway Company

chairman Peter Sills said: “This is a very exciting time for the Swanage Railway and the people of the Isle of Purbeck, with our updated signalling system linking into that of Network Rail near Worgret Junction.

“Having travelled on the last Brit-ish Rail train to Swanage in 1972, it is wonderful to see history turning full circle. I would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard on this exciting and very historic project,” he added.

Negotiations for the lease of the three-mile Network Rail line from near Worgret Junction to the Swanage Railway are at an advanced staged and it is hoped the contract will be signed this summer.� The Isle of Purbeck will be going back more than a century when the volunteer-led Swanage Railway stages its first London and South Western Railway Weekend – starring a unique Victorian steam locomotive from the National Collection.

It will be the first time that a Victorian-designed T9 class steam locomotive has hauled a passenger train through Corfe Castle since the early 1960s. The special two-day event takes place on Saturday and Sunday, 15 and 16 March.

Wareham rail link set for re-opening

Corfe Castle provides the backdrop as South West Trains makes a trial run

Rural Dorset is a step closer to having access to superfast broadband now that potential providers have been invited to bid for the contract.

Dorset County Council is leading the project to achieve investment of £19 million of public funds to ensure rural communities don’t get left behind.

Dorset has around 87,000 homes and busi-nesses which would not have access to superfast broadband without the project.

Cllr Robert Gould, the council’s portfolio holder for environment, said: “This week represents an important milestone. We have worked closely with our partners to agree the best way to improve the access to superfast broad-band for as many people in Dorset as possible.

“Dorset contains huge rural areas which would be left behind without this project. We have £9.44 million from the government and, with our partners, are investing a further £9.44 million of local public funds.”

Providers are expected to invest a further £19 million of their own. They have until mid-April to bid to provide access to speeds of at least 24Mbps to 95% of businesses and homes across Dorset.

£19m boost for rural broadband


Green living

Britain’s favourite forecaster, weatherman Michael Fish, has given a dire warning to Dorset in the wake of the recent storms –

years of even worse weather are on the way and it’s too late to stop it.

Mr Fish, who became a national icon through his forecasts on the BBC, spearheaded a grim re-ality check on future weather for Dorset’s Climate Week at the beginning of March.

Pulling no punches, Mr Fish delivered a lecture at the Dorchester Corn Exchange entitled ‘Cli-mate Change – The Ultimate Weapon Of Mass Destruction’. The weather expert, who spent 42 years with the Met Office, says the storm-battered nation faces a future of more “floody hell”.

“There could be much more severe weather and floods in the UK. It is too late to do more than slow it,” Mr Fish warned bluntly.

He added: “The weird weather has already been responsible for possibly millions of deaths and many more will occur, through floods, droughts, disease and famine.”

Although authorities are only recently waking up to the problems of climate change, Mr Fish said the weather has been known to be worsen-ing for more than 40 years.”

And he gave no hope of things getting better for the storm-bashed West Country, forecasting a bleak future of sodden winters and scorched sum-mers. “The South-West can expect more floods and droughts,” said Mr Fish.

Reinforcing Mr Fish’s forecast on the effects of climate change, Dorset’s Communities Living Sus-tainably (CLS) in Dorset group, funded by the Big Lottery Fund, organised a week of events aimed at inspiring a new wave of local initiatives against the weather threat.

The programme kicked off at Litton and Thorner’s Community Hall, Litton Cheney, with a planning conference on strengthening local food links in West Dorset. Meanwhile in schools in and around Dorchester, the CLS celebrated its work on litter by launching a two-year initiative to lessen environmental impact and encourage environmental leadership in students.

Climate change will bring more floodsBy Candida Blaker

The storm surge sweeping over the Cob at Lyme Regis


A little Italian style set in the heart of

Piddle Inn, Piddletrenthide

The Piddle Inn is a treasure waiting to be found out in the village of Piddletrenthide. The journey is interesting on a winter’s night

as the road winds and weaves its way through farmland and hamlets to reach this beautiful vil-lage of mixed rooflines, from thatch to slate, on quaint old houses and cottages.

The Piddle Inn is enticing as you walk through its doors into another century, as the pub has retained many old features from beams to flooring, creating a fabulous setting for a meal. My friend and I settled ourselves on the comfortable sofas in the bar area to choose from a comprehensive menu.

We had come for a fish dish but discovered it was the Piddle Inn’s Wednesday night ‘Pasta and Pizza’ night, so since host Mario Scarpa is an Ital-ian chef without compare, we didn’t hesitate.

The pub boasts two restaurant areas: one smaller than the other making it ideal for cosy romantic evenings. We settled for the smaller of the two simply because it was warmer!

The pub also has darts matches and a pool table to give it an appeal to the locals.

Having seen the £5 price tag for either pizza or pasta, we were apprehensive as to whether it would prove to be sufficient for an evening meal after our busy working day.

We needn’t have worried. The carbonara arrived in a large bowl with ciabatta to accompany it,

and my friend described it as ‘wonderfully Italian’. My pizza, accompanied by an additional bowl of salad, was no exception.

When it comes to Italian cuisine, this is certainly the place to come. We had a shared starter of oven-baked garlic mushrooms which were soaked in butter leaving no doubt that extra centimetres would appear around the waist.

For my main course I had chosen the Piddle Special from around fifteen different pizzas of-fered on the menu. It arrived large plate size with delicious chunks of peppers, cheese, pepperoni, sausage and mushrooms.

The service was good, with an attentive waiter to see to our needs. The main menu had a wide selection of dishes from steaks to seafood dishes.

Starters include calamari fritti – home-made deep dried squid; whitebait served with home-made tartare sauce; and pepperoni ripieni – pep-per filled with sausagemeat, egg, onion and garlic.

Mains include a huge selection of home-made pizza and pasta dishes, together with delicacies such as pollo cacciatora – chicken with peppers and mushroom covered in tomato sauce; petti di pollo alla crema – breast of chicken with mush-room and cream sauce; and bistecca alla Diana – steak with cream, mushroom and wine sauce.

I can’t wait to go back! What a gem for the local residents to have on their doorstep. Sheena Dearness-Pain

Wine & Dine

The Piddle Inn’s delightful garden offers tables for both eating and drinking


Wine & Dine

The Piddle Inn – a traditonal village pub dating back to the1760s

the Piddle Valley


A look at leisure time over the years

Don’t miss the St George’s Day Fair

Free Time is a brand new exhibi-tion showcasing the results of a current project studying the changing nature of our leisure time over the last 60 years.

The project is being funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and aims to capture and preserve the memories and stories of lo-cal people who used to, or still do, pursue hobbies that aren’t around so much nowadays.

The new archive will be housed at the Dorset History Centre in Dorchester for future generations to study.

The Free Time exhibition will run at Dorset County Museum from 15 February to 17 May.

A Writers’ Slam? The title was de-ceiving. This was one of Purbeck Literary Festival events and held in Bere Regis. Far from slamming the budding writers, the audience applauded unreservedly.

This was a story night with a difference, and the Bere Regis ‘Scribblers’ did it in style by us-ing the Royal Oak Hotel in Bere Regis as their base. Numerous writers bravely stood up to read out the stories they had written of up to 700 words, with only a five-minute slot for each. No

mean feat with two Dorset writ-ers there to judge the best story, along with an audience vote.

Everyone agreed that Chesil Beach Pebbles was the winner. The storyline was undoubt-edly inventive, with a humorous account of two pebbles picked up off the beach, then carried around in the budding author’s hands to inspire her writing raunchy novels. What a roller-coaster adventurous ride those pebbles had! Sheena Dearness-Pain

Welcome to Tumblewater – not that it’s a welcoming place unless you’re an undertaker or umbrella salesman.

Caspian Prye, the twisted land-owner controls everything and everyone – even the police. Into this world stumbles fearless orphan Daniel Dorey, armed only with his wits and a satchel of spine-chilling stories. Can he bring down Caspian Prye? Can he stay alive long enough to tell his tales? Tumblewater – children’s theatre, Wednesday 16 April, Dorchester Arts Centre, 3pm, £6.

To celebrate five years of sup-porting families with children under five, Home-Start West Dorset is holding a table-top fundraiser to raise more cash to train more volunteers to support more families.

The event will take place at the Magistrates’ Room in the Corn Exchange, Dorchester on

Saturday, 15 March from 10am to 2pm. Entry is free.

There will be good quality used items for sale including baby products, books, jewellery, scarves, men’s suits and hand-bags. There will also be dresses and tickets on sale for the Winter Ball, as well as a plant and cake stall and raffle.

Writers’ night out on the pebbles

Welcome to Tumblewater…

Table-top fundraiser for Home-Start

Dorchester Arts Scene

Don’t miss St George’s Day Fair at St George’s Church, Fording-ton on Saturday 26 April, on the village green and in the church. It is a traditional old English fair with the town band playing, all the old games and stalls, and some new.

Organiser Elizabeth Clark has appealed for more volunteers to help out. “We have had a few offers of help but we desperately need more help in all areas. Please give some thought to this and let me know what you feel you can do to help,” she says.

“We are now ready to collect bric-a-brac. Also I hope all you cooks are busy in the kitchen baking cakes or jamming, pick-ling and chutney-making.”

The fair is from 1.30pm-4pm.


Queen Mother Square, Poundbury, Dorchester DT1 3BL

IN THE GALLERY

In the shop:Jewellery, glass,

lamps, bags,cards, gifts,furnishings

In the café:Morning coffee,afternoon teaand deliciouslight lunches

Pictures by Colin Willey, David Brackston, Simon Read and other Dorset artists

www.gallerypoundbury.co.uk

To receive our updates about Gallery exhibitions and news, e-mail [email protected]

Following on from the sell-out performance at the National Theatre, the Senior Company of Dorchester Youth Theatre presents Arthur Miller’s chilling play, The Crucible.

The play tells the story of how the small community of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 is stirred into madness by superstition, paranoia and malice.

It is a savage attack on the evils of mindless persecution and the terrifying power of false accusations.

DYT’s talented Senior Com-pany has been rehearsing for the production, being staged at the Corn Exchange, since September.

The 23-strong cast of 14-18 year olds has embarked on a very different style of production to last year.

Director Jo Simons said, “The Crucible is a play I have wanted to put on with DYT for a long time, but I needed it to be the right company. Now is the right time.”

The chilling drama tells the story of how the small com-munity of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 is stirred into madness by superstition, paranoia and malice. It is a savage attack on the evils of mindless persecution and the terrifying power of false accusations. Added Jo, “This is

a very challenging piece for all involved, and I have nothing but admiration for all the young people who have shown true professionalism throughout the rehearsal process”.

Dorchester Youth Theatre meets on Tuesday evenings in term time at Dorchester Arts Centre. The age range is from six to 18 years, split into four sessions. There are no auditions, and the aim is to provide op-portunities for children to extend their creativity and imagination.

For more information please visit dorchyouththeatre.co.uk.

The Crucible, Corn Exchange, 13-14 March, 7pm, £5/£3 under-18s].

The Crucible: a chilling tale of persecution Dorchester Arts Scene


Great DA Blues line-up

See the Land Felt projectBreathtaking instrumentals

On the Edge with Kevin

There’s an alien in town!

Dorchester Arts Scene

Two great bands have been lined up for March and April by Dorchester Arts Centre – DA Blues.

In March, audience favourite and internationally acclaimed master of blues Papa George is recog-nised as one of the finest guitarists and vocalists in the field, and has recently been inducted into the ‘Blues Hall of Fame’.

Meanwhile in April, foot-stomping, rhythmical and undeniably unique, Rag Mama Rag promises to be one of the highlights of the season.

This English duo is regarded as one of Europe’s finest country blues acts. Their core of their reper-toire is 1920s and 1930s blues but it also take in Mississippi Blues, East Coast Ragtime sounds, and early White Country tunes.Papa George Band, Dorchester Arts Centre, Saturday 22 March; Rag Mama Rag, Saturday 12 April, 8pm (bar 7.30pm), £13/£6.50* in advance £14/£7* on door (*conc).

Artsreach, Dorset’s rural touring arts scheme, has been working in partnership with Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty to develop a project along the South Dorset Ridgeway.

Stretching parallel to the coast, from Abbots-bury in the west to the villages of Osmington and Poxwell in the east, this ridge of high land has been a place of importance since the Neolithic period. Sheep have grazed along the South Dorset Ridgeway for centuries, their fleece being made into wool to weave and knit.

Artsreach commissioned artist Pauline Stanley to lead the Land Felt project, offering local com-munities the chance to find out more about the Ridgeway and try their hand at felt-making.

As well as workshops at Martinstown and Up-wey, sessions also took place at Age UK Dorches-ter and Winterbourne Valley C of E First School.

This spring, these works will be exhibited in village halls, with opportunities to try your hand at felt-making and Dorset button-making at each of the venues. See the free exhibition at (10.30am – 4.00pm): Upwey Village Hall - Saturday 15th & Sunday 16th March; West Stafford Vil-lage Hall - Saturday 22nd & Sunday 23rd March Strangways Hall, Abbotsbury – Friday 11th, Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th April.

Described as “A Noel Coward for the Noel Gal-lagher generation”, quick-fire, sharp-witted poet Murray Lachlan Young brings his Radio 4 series The Alien Balladeer to the stage.

He and his musical fellow traveller Bess Cav-endish will take you on a quirky and distinctive journey, making the everyday seem extraor-dinary. A festival regular at Glastonbury and Latitude, Murray is perhaps best known as resident poet at BBC6 Music. This prom-ises to be another fine evening in the hands of one of the UK’s hottest wordsmiths.The Alien Balladeer, Dorchester Arts Centre, Saturday 15 March, 8pm £12/£10 conc.

Delivering “the most breathtaking instrumental show you’ll hear all year”, the world-famous Tim Kliphuis Trio is not to be missed! Dutchman Tim Kliphuis (violin) and top Scots Nigel Clark (guitar) with Roy Percy (bass) perform a profoundly musi-cal blend of gypsy jazz, classical and folk music. Tim Kliphuis Trio: Wed 12 March, 7:30pm. Nether Compton Village Hall. 01935 413220; Thur 13 March, 7:30pm. Wootton Fitzpaine Village Hall. 01297 560948; Fri 14 March, 7:30pm. Hinton Martel Church. 01258 840569; Sat 15 March, 7:30pm. Tarrant Gunville Village Hall. 01258 830361; Sun 16 March, 7:30pm. Martinstown Village Hall 01305 889963.

On the Edge! explores all those moments in life when we are on the edge. Falling in love, leaving home, getting a job, bungee jumping – you name it, this show explores it!

Kevin Tomlinson is now recognised as one of the UK’s leading comic improvisers. On the Edge premiered at the Edinburgh Festival, where it gar-nered five-star reviews and won critical acclaim. On The Edge!: Wed 2 April, 7:30pm. Shipton Gorge Village Hall. 01308 897562; Fri 4 April, 7:30pm. Piddletrenthide Memorial Hall. 01300 345252; Sat 5 April, 7:30pm. West Stafford Village Hall. 01305 261984; Sun 6 April, 7:30pm. Halstock Village Hall. 01935 83347


March7 March 7.00pm Big Al Whittle (singer-songwriter). Village Hall, Moreton 01929 4632217 March 9.00pm Tom Clements. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester7 March 7.30pm Rat Pack (tribute act). George Albert Hotel, Evershot 01935 4834308 March 9.00pm Howling at the Moon. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester9 March 3.00-5.00pm Mitch Norman. Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester9 March 8.00pm Nearly Good. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester 10 March 8.00pm Traditional Folk Session. Fox & Hounds, Cat-tistock 01300 32077712 March 7.30pm Tim Kliphuis Trio (Gypsy Jazz). Village Hall, Nether Compton, 01935 41322013 March 8.00pm Will Sear (piano). Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester13 March 7.00-9.00pm Nearly Good. Tom Brown’s Dorchester13 March 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s Dorchester13 March 7.30pm Tim Kliphuis Trio (Gypsy Jazz). Village Hall, Wootton Fitzpaine, 01297 56094814 March 9.00pm Three-band extravaganza! Tom Brown’s Dorch.15 March 7.30pm Tim Kliphuis Trio (Gypsy Jazz). Village Hall, Tarrant Gunville, 01258 83036115 March 9.00pm Tom Alford Band. Tom Brown’s Dorchester15 March 9.00pm Bournemouth Sinfonietta Choir Chorus – ‘All That Jazz’. St Mary’s Church, Dorchester 01305 26799216 March 3.00-5.00pm Nick Parker & Claire Tarling (guitar & fid-dle). Durnovaria Bar Dorchester 01305 75601916 March 7.30pm Tim Kliphuis Trio (Gypsy Jazz). Village Hall, Martinstown, 01305 88996316 March 7.45pm Traditional Folk Music Session. The Chalk and Cheese, Maiden Newton 01300 32139616 March 4pm onwards, St Patrick’s Day folk music with No Fixed Abode, Piddle Inn, Piddletrenthide.17 March 8.30pm Traditional Folk Music. Goldies, Dorch.17 March 9.00pm Ansell & Gretel (acoustic duo). Tom Brown’s, Dorchester 01305 26402019 March 1.00-2.00pm Thomas Hardye School students concert. Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 75682719 March 8.30pm Jamie Smith’s Mabon (Celtic folk). Village Hall, Langton Matravers 01929 42383419 March 8.30pm Matt Tarling & Friends (Irish Folk Session). The Blue Raddle, Dorchester 01305 26776219 March 1.00-2.00pm Lunchtime concert by Thomas Hardye School students. Dorset County Museum. 01305 75682720 March 8.00pm Tom Hughes (piano). Durnovaria Bar, Dorch.20 March 1.00-2.00pm Dorchester Piano Trio. Dorset County museum, Dorchester 01305 75682720 March 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester21 March 9.00pm Skint Imperial. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester22 March 9.00pm Dinnerladies (covers). Tom Brown’s, Dorchester22 March 7.30pm Jamie Smith’s MABON (Celtic music) The Exchange Sturminster, Newton 01258 475137 22 March 7-10pm Charity folk concert featuring Ninebarrow and Paul J Openshaw. United Reform Church, South Street, Dorchester. Tickets £5, United Church Shop (Charles Street). 22 March 8.00pm Papa George Band. DA Blues. Dorchester Arts Centre. £13/£6.50* in advance £14/£7* on door (*conc).23 March 3.00-5.00pm Bernado (classically trained guitarist). Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601923 March 7.00-9.00pm Jack Daniels. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester27 March 8.00pm Mike Denham Speakeasy Night with Enrico Tomasso (Jazz). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 27 March 8.00pm Caddy Cooper, Sunray Folk Club. Village Hall, Broadmayne 07786 65407427 March 8.00pm Kipper (singer-guitarist: Americana). Durnovaria

Gig Guide pop, rock, jazz, classical…

Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601927 March 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester28 March 8.00pm Gypsy Fire (gypsy swing, classical and jazz). Dorchester Arts Centre. £12/£10 conc.28 March 7.30 The Leon Hunt-n-Tet (bluegrass band) Powerstock Hut. 01308 485264 29 March 7.30 The Leon Hunt-n-Tet (bluegrass band) Sturminster Marshall Village Hall. 01258 858311.29 March 9.00pm Blue Rock. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester 30 March 3.00-5.00pm Victorian Barbers. Durnovaria Bar, Dorch.

April2 April 8.30pm Traditional Folk Music Session. The Blue Raddle, Dorchester 01305 2677623 April 8.00pm Jamie Parker (singer-guitarist). Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 7560193 April 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester4 April 9.00pm Ian Sedwell. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester 5 April 9.00pm Elijah Wolfe. Tom Brown’s, Dorchester 10 April 1.00-2.00pm Roger Cox (Flamenco guitar). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 75682710 April 8.00pm Jerry Bird (Celtic guitar & fiddle instrumentals). Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601910 April 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s Dorchester10 April 1.00-2.00 pm Lunchtime Concert – Roger Cox – Fla-menco. Dorset County Museum. 01305 75682711 April 7.30pm Elvis vs Jerry Lee Lewis (tribute acts). Corn Exchange, Dorchester 01305 28799212 April 9.00pm Skatmandu (acoustic rock/blues). Tom Brown’s Dorchester 01305 26402012 April 8.00pm Rag Mama Rag. DA Blues. Dorchester Arts Cen-tre. £13/£6.50* in advance £14/£7* on the door (*conc).13 April 3.00-5.00pm Jamie Pinnow. Durnovaria Bar, Dorch.14 April 8.00pm Traditional Folk Session. Fox & Hounds, Cat-tistock 01300 32077716 April 8.30pm Matt Tarling & Friends (Irish Folk Session). The Blue Raddle, Dorchester 01305 26776217 April 8.30pm Ed Hintze (Elton John tribute). Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601917 April 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s Dorchester19 April 8.00pm Cash Converted (Johnny Cash tribute) + support. Goldies, Dorchester 01305 45820219 April 7.30pm The Band, with Angela Laycock (ceilidh). The Chalk and Cheese, Maiden Newton 01300 32139620 April 3.00-5.00pm Tom Caulfield (guitarist). Durnovaria Bar Dorchester 01305 75601920 April 7.45pm Traditional Folk Music Session. The Chalk and Cheese, Maiden Newton 01300 32139621 April 8.30pm Traditional Folk Music Session. Goldies, Dorch.24 April 8.00pm Live music (TBC). Durnovaria Bar Dorchester24 April 8.00pm Sunray Folk Club. Village Hall, Broadmayne 07786 65407424 April 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s Dorchester20 April 3.00-5.00pm Tom Caulfield (guitarist). Durnovaria Bar Dorchester 01305 75601927 April 3.00-5.00pm Ian Sedwell. Durnovaria Bar Dorchester

May 1 May 8.00pm Ansell & Gretel (acoustic duo). Durnovaria Bar Dorchester 01305 7560191 May 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s Dorchester4 May 7.30pm Rat Pack (tribute act). George Albert Hotel, Ever-shot 01935 4834307 May 8.30pm Folk Music Session. The Blue Raddle, Dorchester8 May 9.00pm Open Mic. Night. Tom Brown’s Dorchester


Out & AboutMarch

7 March 7.30pm. Doors open 7pm. Music and Supper Evening - An evening of music with Big Al Whittle and Friends to raise money for the new village hall. Tickets £8.00 to include a hot supper. Tickets from Maeve 01929 463221or [email protected] March 7.30pm. Bash St Theatre presents The Last Il-lusion. Corfe Castle Village Hall. 01929 480483 www.artsreach.co.uk7 March 8.00pm (doors & bar 7.30pm) The Word – Steve Duncan & Stephen Morrison-Burke. (Spoken word). Dorcheser Arts Centre. £8/£6 members & concession. 7 March 7.00pm Druce Farm Roman Villa (lecture). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 7568278 March 10.00am – 4.00pm Book Fair. United Church Hall, Shaftesbury 01725 5144808 March 9.30am – 4.00pm Antiques Fair. Town Hall, Beaminster 01305 7560198 March 7.30pm. Bash St Theatre presents The Last Il-lusion. Broadmayne Village Hall. 01305 854205 www.artsreach.co.uk9 March 7.30pm. Bash St Theatre presents The Last Illusion. Portesham Village Hall. 01305 871925 www.artsreach.co.uk10 March Dorset theatre goers club trip to ‘War Horse’ at The Mayflower, Southampton. Inclusive price £65. 01202 801285 for further details. www.dorsettheatregoersclub.co.uk12 March 8.30pm Chris Piercy (magician/hypnotist). Durnovaria Bar. Dorchester 01305 75601912 March 7.00pm The Geomorphology of the world’s deserts (lecture). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 75682713 March 7.30pm Six Wives of Henry VIII - Living Spit Theatre Company. Sturminster Newton Exchange 01258 475137 www.artsreach.co.uk13 & 14 March 7.00pm (doors & bar 6.30p) The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Dorchester Youth Theatre Seniors Com-pany. Corn Exchange. £5/£3 under 18s14 March Farmer’s market. Bridport14 March 7.30pm (doors & bar 7pm) ‘Are museums and collections redundant in an online world?’ with Dr Erica McAlister. Café Scientifique – Dorchester Arts Centre. FREE14 March 8.30am-11.00am Dorchester Country Market. Magistrates Room, Corn Exchange15 March 10.00am – 4.00pm Book Fair. Church Hall, Sherborne 01803 61335615 March 8.00pm (doors & bar 7.30pm) Murray Lachlan Young is The Alien Balladeer. Spoken word/music. Dorchester Arts Centre. £12/£10 members & concessions15 March 10.00am – 4.00pm Antiques & Collectors Fair. Corn Exchange, Dorchester 15-16 March 10.30am – 4.00pm Land Felt (Exhibition – Dorset Ridgeway Project). Village Hall, Upwey 01305 26951215-16 March Victorian steam gala – LSWR Weekend. Swanage Railway. 01929 42580016 March 9.30 registration, Judging starts at 10.30am. Companion Dog Show. Weymouth Pavilion Ocean Room. 01305 457259 19 March 7.30pm Quiz night. Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601921 March 7.30pm Colin Thompson Turlough O’Carolan - This is Your Life Comrades Hall Broadwindsor. 01308 867644 www.artsreach.co.uk20 March Dorset Vintage and Classic Auctions. Athel-hampton House & Gardens.20 March 7.00pm Elizabeth Frink and Archiving the Arts

in Dorset (lecture). Corn Exchange, Dorchester 01305 26799221 March 2.00-3.30pm Community Market. St Martin’s, Broadmayne 01305 85376521 March 8.30am-11.00am Dorchester Country Market. Magistrates Room, Corn Exchange.21 March 8.00pm (doors & bar 7.30pm) Simon and Gar-funkel Through the Years with Bookends. Music. Dorches-ter Arts Centre. £12/£10 members & concessions22 March Farmer’s market. South Street, Dorchester22-23 March Fireman Sam. Swanage Railway. 01929 42580022-23 March 10.30am – 4.00pm Land Felt (Exhibition – Dorset Ridgeway Project). Strangways Hall, Abbotsbury 01305 26951224 March 7.00pm Hardy, Whistler & Monet: Impressions & Arguments (lecture). Dorset County Museum, Dorches-ter 01305 26273523 March 7.30pm The Broadway Divas. Weymouth Pavil-ion. £13 adults, £12 concessions. 01305 78322525 March 7.30pm Dorset for Badger & Bovine Welfare meeting. Goldies, Dorchester 01305 75601926 March 8.30pm Chris Piercy (magician/hypnotist). Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601926 March 7.30pm Dorset People’s Assembly meeting. Goldies, Dorchester 01305 75601927 March 7.00pm Rambling Through Rajasthan (lecture). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 26273527 March 7.30pm Dave Mynne in Great Expectations. Chetnole Village Hall. 01935 873555 www.artsreach.co.uk27 March 7.30pm Wine Tasting – ‘Wine of Loire’. Café Panini, Dorchester 01308 42750028 March 8.30am-11.00am Dorchester Country Market. Magistrates Room, Corn Exchange.28 March 7.30pm Dave Mynne in Great Expectations. Pamela Hambro Hall, Winterborne Stickland. 01258 880920 www.artsreach.co.uk28 March 8.00pm Mike Denham Speakeasy Night with Enrico Tomasso. Dorset County Museum. 01305 75682730 March Mother’s Day. Farmer Palmer’s Farm Park. Half price entry for Mums. Organford, Wareham. 01202 62202230 March 11.00am-4.00pm Best of Dorset Show. Wey-mouth Pavilion. Free entry. www.visitweymouth.co.uk

April2 April 7.30pm Quiz night. Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 7560192-3 April 9.30am-4.30pm Stained Glass Workshop. High-way Farm, Bridport 01308 4243413 April 7.00pm Talk: The Dorset Lanscape and Romantic Imagination by John Walker. Dorset County Museum. 01305 7568273-5 April Maskerade. Weymouth Drama Club. Weymouth Pavilion. £10.50. 01305 7832254 April 7.30pm Kepow Theatre presents On The Edge. Piddletrenthide Memorial Hall. 01300 345252 www.artsreach.co.uk4 April 7.30pm (doors open 7pm) Recent Discoveries on Cranborne Chase. Talk by Martin Green. Dorset County Museum. Free entry (£3 donation encouraged) 5 April 10.00am-4.00pm Tiger Day (tank demonstration). Tank Museum, Bovington 01929 4050965 April 7.30pm Kepow Theatre presents On The Edge. West Stafford Village Hall. 01305 261984 www.artsreach.co.uk5 April 7.30pm Dave Mynne in Great Expectations. Sand-


ford Orcas Village Hall. 01963 220208 www.artsreach.co.uk5 April Poundbury Farmer’s market, Queen Mother Square5-6 April Spring Steam Gala. Swanage Railway. 01929 4258005-21 April Medieval encampment, archery and combat demonstrations and have-a-go sessions. Corfe Castle5 April 10-12 am Easter Coffee Morning at the United Church, South Street, Dorchester. All proceeds to Mercy Ships.6-21 April First World War Experience. Bovington Tank Museum. 01929 4050969 April 8.30pm Chris Piercy (magician/hypnotist). Durno-varia Bar, Dorchester 01305 7560199 April Fireman Sam. Children’s Farm, Abbotsbury. 01305 8711309-11 April 7.30pm Grease - Youth Musical Theatre Group. Weymouth Pavilion. £11.50 to £14. 01305 78322510 April 7.00pm The Cerne Giant, Landscape, Gods & The Stars (lecture). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 26230511 April 2.00-3.30pm Community Market. St Martin’s, Broadmayne 01305 85376511 April Farmer’s market. Bridport12 April 2.30pm & 7.30pm Grease - Youth Musical Theatre Group. Weymouth Pavilion. £11.50 to £14. 01305 78322512 April 7.30pm Hammer and Tongs – Theatre Alibi. Stur-minster Newton Exchange 01258 475137 www.artsreach.co.uk12 April Dorset theatre goers trip to “A Perfect Murder” at the New Victoria Theatre. 01202 801285 for further details. www.dorsettheatregoersclub.co.uk11-13 April 10.30am – 4.00pm Land Felt (Exhibition – Dorset Ridgeway Project). Village Hall, West Stafford 01305 26951211-13 April 12.00 – 6.00pm ‘Folklore, Thomas Hardy & Rural Writing (National Conference – Folklore Society/Thomas Hardy Society). Corn Exchange, Dorchester 01305 26951212 April 10.00am – 4.00pm Antiques & Collectors Fair. Corn Exchange, Dorchester 01929 47198713 April 10.00am -4.00pm Antiques Fair. Kingston Maur-ward house, Dorchester 01305 21505015 April 3.00pm & 7.00pm Peter Pan. Weymouth Pavilion. £18/£16 concessions, family of 4 £63. 01305 78322516 April 6.30pm. The Bridport Ghost Walk. Meet at Bucky-doo square. Adults £6.00 Children £3.00 (under 10’s free) Bookings/enquiries: 07923 074787 16 April 3.00pm (doors & bar 2.30pm) Grisly Tales from

Out & AboutTumblewater. Teasel Theatre. Dorchester Arts Centre. Chil-dren’s theatre. Recommended for all ages 8+. £616 April 7.30pm Quiz night. Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601918-21 April 10.00am -4.00pm Easter Egg Hunt. Kingston Maurward house, Dorchester 01305 21505018-21 April Cadbury Easter Egg Trails. Corfe Castle18 April Easter at Farmer Palmer’s Farm Park. Organford, Wareham. 01202 62202218 April 3.00pm (doors & bar 2.30pm) Pirate Gran based on the books by Geraldine Durrant and Rose Forshall. Scamp Theatre. Children’s Theatre. Corn Exchange. £12/£10 conc./£7 children/£34 family ticket.20 April 7.30pm Let’s Hang On. Weymouth Pavilion. £21 Adults/£19 concessions. 01305 78322518-21 April The Giant Easter Egg Hunt. Abbotsbury Sub-tropical Gardens. 01305 87113019 April An Evening with Mike Colbourn. Monkey World. Tickets £10. To book call 01929 40101819 April 10.00am – 4.00pm Book Fair. Church Hall, Sherborne 01803 61335621 April 10.00am – 4.00pm Book Fair. Digby Memorial Hall, Sherborne 01763 24880022 April 7.00pm Active Faults and Archaeoseismology in the Agean (lecture). Thomas Hardye School, Dorchester 01305 26230523 April 8.30pm Chris Piercy (magician/hypnotist). Durno-varia Bar, Dorchester 01305 75601924 April 7.30pm Wine Tasting – ‘Argentine Discoveries’. Café Panini, Dorchester 01308 42750024 April 7.00pm Thomas Hardy Lecture – Hardy, Whistler and Monet – Impressions and Arguments. Dorset County Museum. 01305 75682725 April 8.00pm (doors & bar 7.30pm) Stand Up Dorches-ter. Comedy. Corn Exchange. £8/£6 members & conces-sions. May contain adult content26-27 April Medieval Archery Academy. Corfe Castle26-27 April 10.00am-4.00pm Art Exhibition & Sale. Island Artists. Weymouth Pavilion. Free entry. 01305 78322526 April Farmer’s market. South Street, Dorchester26 April 10.00am-4.00pm Craft Fair. Corn Exchange.26-27 April 10.30am-5.00pm An exhibition of new paint-ings by Nicola Cooke. Free admission. Upwey Old School (next to wishing well), Upwey, Weymouth, Dorset. DT3 5QE. Tel 01300 320118 www.nicolacookeart.co.uk27 April 7.30pm That’ll Be The Day. Weymouth Pavilion. £23 adults/£21.50 seniors/£8.50 under 16s. 30 April 7.00pm Lecture – Art and the Dorset Lanscape by Jim Potts. Dorset County Museum. 01305 75682730 April 7.30pm Quiz night. Durnovaria Bar, Dorchester30 April 7.00pm Art & The Dorset Landscape (lecture). Dorset County Museum, Dorchester 01305 262735

May3 May Poundbury farmer’s market, Queen Mother Square3-5 May Siege of Wareham at Corfe Castle. Saxons and Vikings battle re-enactments and Saxon Village.4 May 10.00am – 4.00pm Dorset Knob Throwing & Frome Valley food Festival, Village Hall, Cattistock 01300 3204044 May 10.30am – 5.00pm Plant Sale, Athelhampton House 01305 8483635 May 10.00am-4.00pm Tanks in Action (tank demonstra-tion). Tank Museum, Bovington 01929 4050967 May 8.30pm Chris Piercy (magician/hypnotist). Durno-varia Bar, Dorchester 01305 7560199 May Farmer’s market. Bridport9 May Tank Museum Experience Day. Bovington.


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Out & About

It’s time to get ready for the 11th biennial Dorchester Festival which takes place over the late May Bank Holiday weekend.

The festival has become one of the town’s most anticipated and cherished celebrations, attracting thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds from a wide area to a high-quality, diverse programme of theatre, music, dance, comedy and community arts in both indoor and outdoor settings.

This year’s festival will see a feast of talent from near and far, with some of the best of our local performers as well as some outstanding internationally renowned musicians, comedians and entertainers.

Highlights of the 2014 pro-gramme will be:� A three-day programme of free entertainment and activities in Borough Gardens featuring music, dance, installations,

walkabout performers, family fun, workshops, food and market stalls, and a bar; � The wildly exciting RSVP Bhangra band who will lead the parade through Dorchester town centre on Saturday 24 May and then perform in the Borough Gardens;� The Dorset premiere of a new play about Martha Brown, whose hanging in Dorchester was a major influence on the writing of Thomas Hardy, performed by Angel Exit Theatre Company;� The Beat – the massively pop-ular ska band from Birmingham who fuse ska, pop, soul, reggae and punk rock – will headline on Monday 26 May in Dorchester’s Corn Exchange;� Late-night stand-up comedy from Laurence Clarke, writer, ac-tor, presenter and disability rights campaigner, who performs his darkly comic show ‘Inspired’.� An exhibition at Dorchester

Arts Centre by award-winning painter Fernando Velazquez as part of Dorset Art Weeks; � An acoustic cafe in the Bor-ough Gardens featuring some of the best local young musicians and spoken-word performers;� Children’s theatre from Birds-nest Theatre;� Talks and literary events for adults and children;� Pop-up events around the town.

The Dorchester Festival is organised by Dorchester Arts with the backing of Arts Council England, West Dorset District Council and Dorchester Town Council.

For more information about the festival, or for ways you can get involved, contact Dorchester Arts’ Artistic Director Mark Tat-tersall at [email protected].

Dorchester Festival, Borough Gardens, Arts Centre, Corn Exchange 22–26 May

Get involved with the Dorchester Festival!


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