Congratulations and thanks to everyone who attended or contributed in any way to our Open Day event which was an outstanding success. We attracted a lot of interest from visitors so much so at one point we could hardly move! It was great to be back in the Barrington Hall where we could show first hand what we are about.

In particular, thanks go to Jo Brearley and her team for organising the event, and Jenny Bass and her team for the refreshments which were extremely popular. In addition, thanks to the outdoor team who encouraged the public over our doors.

Finally, it was also great to see so many of our Group Leaders taking considerable trouble to promote their Groups in imaginative and interesting ways.

The castle dates back to Sir Walter Raleigh who acquired the Old Castle in 1592. At first he tried to modernise it, but then he built a new house in in the deer park, known as Sherborne lodge. When Raleigh fell out of favour the house was acquired by the diplomat Sir John Digby and it has remained in the family for the last 400 year. John Digby added four wings to Raleigh’s building, giving the house its present H-shape.

The castle contains works by artist of their time and nationally important collections of furniture and porcelain. In every room there was interesting artefacts and collections from the 1500’s to present times.

At the end of our tour the sun decided to shine and we were able to enjoy the magnificent grounds designed by Lancelot Capability Brown. The 50m acre lake is surrounded by beautifully landscaped grounds and boasts many champion trees and stunning views.

Thanks to Anne Hutton and Keith Banks for arranging the visit

The gardens are renowned for spring colour, with its world-famous collection of rhododendrons and azaleas.  We also saw some spectacular displays of camellias and magnolias, as well as hundreds of thousands of spring bulbs in daffodil meadow.   Other delights were the Dragonfly pond and the Giant Koi Carp and Golden Orfe fish at top pond.

We all enjoyed a ride on the narrow-gauge railway, which is celebrating its 21st anniversary this year. It departed from a replica Victorian station, Exbury central and travelled through a tunnel, over a bridge, round the dragonfly pond and through the summer lane garden.

Thank you to Richard Tucker for arranging.

What a wonderful Study Visit. We were so lucky with the hotel which was situated just off the Burg square, the centre point of this beautiful city. Bruges is famous for its stunning architecture, cobbled streets and canals.

The architecture in Bruges spans the centuries, dating back at its oldest to medieval times. The different buildings and styles chart the changes in design over the years. We visited the Gothic Town Hall built is 1376 with six Gothic style windows across the front façade, as well as 48 niches for statues, there was plenty to see.  Four of our group even climbed the Bruges Belfry – also known as Belfort and took some amazing photos from the top.

A beer tasting evening was enjoyed by all, as were waffles and chocolate.

During the day, many of us travelled the canals by boat whilst other took a mini coach tour of the city.  Some enjoyed a horse and cart tour, something for all.

We also enjoyed a day trip to Antwerp to view the Rubens Museum and walk around the city.

Thanks to Bob Reeve and Clare Clayton for organising a wonderful trip.

BRUGES

ANTWERP

39 members set off from Ferndown and West Moors for another successful visit organised by the Visits & Events Team.

After a comfortable and smooth journey, punctuated by a comfort stop for coffee at Chievely Services, we arrived at Bletchley on time and were met by 2 guides who split us into 2 groups for an informative one hour tour with an explanation of the various functions which had been carried out in the different huts.

Their explanations helped us to understand the significant contribution made by so many at Bletchley during the war in decoding enemy communications.

 Although the weather was dry and sometimes fine, we experienced a north easterly wind which encouraged us to get inside as soon as possible.

Service at lunchtime  in ‘Hut 4’ cafeteria proved somewhat chaotic but we were  all eventually served. Refreshed, we continued our individual interests until departure time.

Members again demonstrated their ability to observe the timetable and we left promptly for another comfortable journey back to home base. Thanks were given to driver Graham, who has contributed to past visits and readily accommodated our wishes.