• T H E • T H R E E • V I L L A G E S • News & Information covering Great Amwell, St Margarets and Stanstead Abbotts •
In place of the scheduled 8.45am BCP Communion, a special service will be held in the evening. The details are as follows:
Traditional Evensong to honour the life and service of our late Queen Elizabeth II
Sunday 18th September
6pm at St James’s Church, Roydon Road
A scratch choir (a group who rehearse and perform, all in one day) will perform. If you would like to join, rehearsals start at 5pm prompt. For a music list, please email admin@3churches.net.
A Service of Prayer and Reflection remembering her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be held at St Andrew’s Church, Cappell Lane, Stanstead Abbotts at 9.30am this morning (Friday 9th Sept.). This service of remembrance and reflection will also be streamed from the church using Zoom, click JOIN ONLINE to view (select Launch Meeting and it will connect).
Pilgrim Walk from Waltham Abbey to Ware on Friday 16th September.
Experience the re-launched London to Walsingham Camino, led by Andy Bull, author of the newly published guidebook to the route.
SCHEDULE
10am Gather in Waltham Abbey Church
10.30am Begin walk to Broxbourne, via the River Lea Country Park (6 miles)
12.30–1.00pm Lunch stop at St Augustine’s Church, Broxbourne
1.00pm Continue walk to Great Amwell (5.5 miles)
3.30pm Arrive at St John the Baptist Church, Great Amwell
4pm Continue walk to Ware (2 miles) 4.45pm Arrive at St Mary’s Church, Ware
You are welcome to join at the start of the walk, at Broxbourne or Great Amwell.
To register your interest, and for full details of the day, including transport links, contact Andy Bull at andyzbull@gmail.com .
Another reunion will be held this year for St John the Baptist Primary School past pupils circa 1945–1955. This will be held on Wednesday 28th September at the George IV pub from 11.30am onwards.
Please contact Jennifer on 01438 358404 or 07960 381 339 if you are able to come and would like some lunch too!
Looking forward to meeting again and exchanging all our memories…
Jennifer Searle
Why not go along and support the Summer Fair at St Andrew’s Primary School on Friday 1st July, from 4.30pm to 7.30pm.
Entry is 50p for Adults and children go FREE!
There will be food & drink available, and lots to keep the kids entertained. Everybody welcome!
The next Equine Table Top Boot Sale is going to be held on Sunday 10th July.
11am to 1.30pm at Widford Playing Field.
All money raised will go to SAFE – Saving Abandoned Fly-Grazing Equines. Check out their Facebook page for more information about the charity.
Have you thought about picking up the racket again and enjoying a social, open air sport at your local tennis club?
If so, come along to the St Margaretsbury Tennis Club Open Days between 12 and 4 on Saturday 16th July and Sunday 17th July.
Try your hand at tennis and find out about the range of competitive memberships and activities on offer.
St Margaretsbury Tennis Club, Stanstead Abbotts
On Sunday June 5th, the first Great Amwell Comedy Shindig drew a crowd of several thousand people who laughed uproariously at numerous points. Ed Byrne had his spot during the afternoon in a programme that included Milton Jones, Angela Barnes, Jason Manford, Reginald D Hunter, Phil Nicoll, Ivan Brackenbury and Lloyd Griffith. Many of these stand-ups would be familiar to TV viewers and they clearly lived up to expectations.
The dead pan Milton Jones kept his audience on the alert for punchlines as his anecdotes about dozens of relations – especially grandads – included surprising and imaginative word-play as they reached their conclusions. Angela Barnes comically shared her experiences as a woman who doesn’t conform to the expectations of the norms in the more general population. In fact it was of course the recognition of her differences being very many people’s differences that made her so warmly received.
The event was well-organised, with food and drink available on site, loads of parking space and no queueing on the road. Thanks go to Just the Tonic/Church End Comedy team for their hard work organising such a fun event.
Julia Davies
On Thursday June 2nd, around 150 people were present at the Easneye field – at the invitation of Nicholas and Henrietta Buxton – and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. The late sun was shining on the trees with a golden glow as villagers arrived, from 8.30pm onwards, to gaze down to Hoddesdon and far beyond to the City of London and Canary Wharf. People happily picnicked and enjoyed refreshments from the bar as the late sun sank out of sight and the music became more patriotic. From his trailer, Nicholas Buxton delivered a rousing speech extolling the long reign of Her Majesty the Queen, before going over to the enormous bonfire and lighting it – dead on 9.45pm – so that it took its place in the official network of beacons across the country.
Thanks are due to the Buxton family for the welcome on to their land, for the work that went into building the beacon and providing the music. Volunteers were supervising the parking and running the bar and a committee had met several times to ensure that everything was in place. Stanstead Abbotts Parish Council very much appreciates and thanks all of those people who made the beacon happen.
Julia Davies
On Thursday 2nd June residents of Great Amwell were able to meet on the Vicar’s Field (with the kind permission of St. John the Baptist School) and enjoy the sunshine and some fun together before the Platinum Jubilee beacon lighting at 9:45, to coincide with all other beacons across the Commonwealth. Some lively games of rounders were played, children and adults had their faces painted and the souvenir mugs were handed out to provide a memento of what was truly a unique event, all to a well-judged soundtrack of music that easily overcame the neighbouring music festival.
The beacon was lit by Tom Foy as Chair of Great Amwell Parish Council and was spectacular. Indeed, someone called the fire brigade who were obliged to attend; although on a night of national beacon-lighting, this was probably not the only place that this happened. Hopefully, the young who came will look back in years to come and be able to say, ‘I remember the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee’.
The event was organised by Suzie Nichol and supported by East Herts District Council, Great Amwell Parish Council, St. John the Baptist Church and Parish Hall, the Amwell Society, and generous private donations.
The Three Villages 