Author: Andrew Taylor

TOWN Mayor Dick Sweatman performed the official opening of the East Grinstead Art Society’s annual exhibition at Chequer Mead.

Praising the “fantastic” talent which was on view, Dick told the audience that his grandfather had taken up painting later in his life, joking “and no it wasn’t painting by numbers!”

Among the town councillors who also attended the viewing were Norman and Julie Mockford, Norman Webster, Bob and Christine Mainstone and Nick Hodges.

The launch event helped to raise funds for the Kent and Sussex Air ambulance.

The air ambulance service, which covers East Grinstead from bases in Marden and Redhill, costs £6 million a year to run and has already answered 960 emergency calls this year. The new night flights are estimated to have saved 450 lives.

The exhibition will be at Chequer Mead until next Friday.

*If you want to know more about the EG Art Society ring Wendy Vick on 01342 311093.

Art Society President Peter Sinden

Photos courtesy of East Grinstead Online

Mid Sussex District Council is inviting comments on the District Plan prior to its submission to the Government.  The role of the District Plan is to say broadly what, where, when and how development will take place in Mid Sussex up until 2031.

The Plan, plus accompanying Sustainability Appraisal and Habitats Regulations Assessment has been published today, Friday 12th June 2015 and is available to view at www.midsussex.gov.uk/districtplan.  The consultation period lasts six weeks, the deadline for all responses is midnight on Friday 24th July 2015.

Paper copies of the Plan and response forms are also available at libraries, Help Points, the District Council offices, and Town and Parish Council offices.

Comments can be submitted online at www.midsussex.gov.uk/districtplan or can be sent to Planning Policy and Economic Development, Oaklands, Oaklands Road, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH16 1SS or LDFconsultation@midsussex.gov.uk.   All comments will be public information, and considered by an independent planning inspector as part of the public examination of the District Plan.

For further information on the District Plan, please contact the Planning Policy and Economic Development team on planningpolicy@midsussex.gov.uk or 01444 477053.

THE Outdoor Services Team has been working hard over the past quarter to ensure that the town is tidy and well kept.

Since the beginning of March they have removed two incidents of graffiti covering five square metres and taken down 352 items of fly posting.

The team has also completed the first application of weed killer on curbs and pavements throughout the town using a new product, Nomix, which is a unique low volume herbicide application system. It is more lightweight than the knapsacks the team was using in the past, and as there is a minimum amount of drift, it can also be used in windy weather.

THE East Grinstead Council for Voluntary Service has now combined with similar volunteer organisations in Horsham and Mid Sussex South to form a new charity, Horsham & Mid Sussex Voluntary Action (H&MSVA).

The new charity will continue to provide information, help, guidance and support to local voluntary and community groups in East Grinstead and the surrounding rural villages, but by working together the charities believe they can offer a better and more comprehensive service  drawing on their decades of experience.

“By joining together we combine nearly 50 years of experience and knowledge of working with and for local communities within the towns and surrounding rural villages of Horsham and Mid Sussex,” said a spokesman.

* For more information about the new charity, how to ask for help or volunteer your services, see the website www.hamsva.org.uk for up-to-date information and news.<

TESTS on the bone which was dug up in the High Street yesterday afternoon by workmen for South East Water have shown it is not human in origin.

A police pathology report confirmed this morning that the remains are from an animal, and work has now recommenced on the large hole being dug outside outside Broadleys for the installation of a district water meter.

The discovery of the bone prompted speculation that it might be a relic of Thomas Dunngate, Anne Tree and John Forman, the three East Grinstead martyrs who were burned on the same spot for their adherence to the Protestant faith in 1556.

Coincidentally the Town Council is to place a plaque remembering the three martyrs on the site later this summer.

They are also remembered with three stone memorial stones – not gravestones – outside St Swithun’s.

UNTIL 3 June: Stitched Up Textiles presents Apertures

An exciting exhibition by Stitched Up Textiles – each member of the group has interpreted the theme in a different manner, making an interesting exhibition of high quality textile work.

Friday 5 June to Tuesday 9 June –  Fibre Fusion 2015 An exhibition by East Grinstead Spinners

An exhibition of textile work by members of this local group.  There will be demonstrations of spinning and weaving, and displays of wheels and looms.

East Grinstead spinners are affiliated to the Association of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers.

Thursday 11 June to Friday 19 June – East Grinstead Art Society Annual Summer Exhibition

East Grinstead Art Society Annual Summer Exhibition – meet the artists exhibiting and maybe consider joining the friendly Art Society

Tuesday 2 June at 7.30pm – The Fureys

Legends of Irish music The Fureys, renowned for hit songs including I will love you, When you were Sweet 16, The Green Fields of France and The Old Man are making their first appearance at Chequer Mead.

The Fureys are responsible for some of the most stirring music ever to capture the public imagination, and their folk-based music has received standing ovations in some of the biggest concert halls in the world. They credit their musical ability to their parents, Ted and Nora, who were well-known musicians and encouraged their sons to play music from a very early age. Tickets £18.

Wednesday 3 June at 8pm – Julie Felix

Julie Felix, who recently celebrated 50 years in the world of music, arrived in England from California in 1964 and became the first solo folk artist to be signed to a major British record company when she signed with Decca.

In 1966 Julie became the resident singer on the amazingly popular TV programme The Frost Report and quickly became a household name.

Tickets £15/ concessions £13.50

Thursday 4 June at 7.30pm –Chequer Mead Silver Screen presents Mr Turner

Mr Turner is a 2014 biographical drama based on the life and career of the 18^th century British artist J.M.W Turner, played by Timothy Spall.

Profoundly affected by the death of his esteemed father, loved by his housekeeper, Hannah Danby, whom he takes for granted and occasionally exploits sexually, he forms a close and loving relationship with a seaside landlady.

Throughout all this, Turner travels, paints, stays with the country aristocracy, visits a brothel, has himself strapped to the mast of a ship so that he can paint a snowstorm, and is both celebrated and reviled by the public and by royalty.

Tickets £5/concessions £4

Friday 5 June at 7.30pm – Richard Digance

Richard Digance returns to Chequer Mead for another evening of hysterical nostalgia as well as a wealth of new songs and anecdotes.

A BAFTA-nominated performer, a world acclaimed poet, an author and an artist and one of the country’s most celebrated comedy entertainers.

Richard will also be exhibiting some of his paintings around the Pavilion for purchase.

Tickets £16.50/ concessions £14.50

Saturday 6 June at 7.30pm – East Grinstead’s Summer Comedy Gala

Four top comedians perform for one night only.

The line up includes the brilliantly deadpan Romesh Ranganathan (Drunk History, Mock the Week, Live at the Apollo), the uniquely quirky and award-winning comedian Joe Wilkinson (Him & Her, Miranda, Live at the Electric, 8 Out of 10 Cats) and the gorgeously quick-witted Kerry Godliman (Derek, Live at the Apollo, Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow).

The night will be MC-ed by the hugely likeable funny man, Paul McCaffrey (Russell Howard’s Good News, Practical Jokers)

Tickets £10 in advance, £12 on the door.

Thursday 11 & Friday 12 June at 7.30pm – Rising Stars Adult Theatre Company presents Sweet Charity

After box office success with their play version of Blood Brothers, Rising Stars returns with the Broadway hit musical Sweet Charity.

Sweet Charity tells the story of dance hall hostess Charity Hope Valentine who finds herself falling in love, time and time again, with the wrong man.  Will she find her one true love finally?  Featuring well-known songs such as Big Spender, Rhythm of Lifeand I Love to Cry at Weddings, this musical is filled with uplifting songs, dances and comedy for the whole family.

Tickets £12/ concessions £11/ children £9.

Monday 15 June at 7 30pm – Germaine Greer presents The Disappearing Woman

Forty years ago it seemed women were about to take their rightful place in the world but Germaine Greer says women are actually disappearing because flesh is not allowed.

As soon as girls accept the size, role and shape of adult women, they begin to fade from view.

With each stage of their lives, as they become successively wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, they become less visible.

And virtually obliterated are the three-quarters of care home residents who are women.

Germaine Greer attempts to explain this state of affairs and to suggest some strategies for change.

Tickets: £15/ concessions £13.

Tuesday 16 June at 7.30pm Chequer Mead Silver Screen presents Trash

Trash is  based on Andy Mulligan’s  2010 novel of same name and follows three Brazilian street teenagers – Raphael, Gardo, and Rato  – who spend their time picking through litter in the hope of finding useful waste.

One day they discover a wallet whose contents will bring them into conflict with the brutal local police force as they find themselves unlikely whistleblowers in a city rife with corruption.

Rated 15.Tickets £5/ concessions £4.

Wednesday 17 June at 8pm – A Concert with Albert Hammond

Hypertension Music are proud to present Albert Hammond, with his band, performing his own hits and all the hits he wrote for countless top recording stars.

Hammond is best known for his own hit It Never Rains in Southern California and his songs are responsible for the sale of over 360 million records worldwide including over 30 chart topping hits.

These include When I Need You – Leo Sayer, Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now – Starship,  One Moment in Time – Whitney Houston.

Tickets £25.

Thursday 18 June at 7pm – The East Grinstead Business Association presents their Inaugural Business Lecture

This is one of the EGBA’s initiatives towards making East Grinstead a destination and will be an opportunity to hear from Jeremy Siegal, the Chief Executive Officer of White Stuff about their business model, their reasons for coming to East Grinstead and what they believe the future holds.

The evening will also present the opportunity to network both before and after the lecture.

Tickets £10 for EGBA Members, £15 Non-Members.

Block bookings for schools are available please enquire at the box office.

For further information contact caroll.everest@egba.co.uk

Friday 19 June at 8pm – Judie Tzuke, Songs and Stories

Judie Tzuke is one of the UK’s finest Singer/Songwriters and is known all over the world for her timeless song Stay With Me Till Dawn.

The event is part of her Songs and Stories experience and promises to be an intimate evening of old favourites and new songs and tales from across her life and career.

Tickets: £20

Wednesday 24 June at 7.30pm – The New Foxtrot Serenaders presents Strictly Gershwin

The New Foxtrot Serenaders are coming to Chequer Mead to perform an evening of some of Gershwin’s best loved melodies, including such classics as They Can’t Take That Away From Me and I’ve Got Rhythm.

Tickets £17/ concessions £16.

Friday 26 June at 7pm – Gregor Lersch presents Outlook Floral Art Demonstration

World master Florist Gregor Lersch returns to Chequer Mead bringing an exciting evening of Contemporary Floral Art that demonstrates his lifelong passion for plant material.

Tickets £17.

Saturday 27 June at 6pm & Sunday: 28 June at 1pm & 6pm –  the Gieldgud Academy of Performing Arts presentsMoving Pictures

The Gielgud Academy (GAPA) presents an exciting multimedia show combining dance, drama and musical theatre to pay homage to the world of film.  Featuring 250 of GAPA’s gifted young performers.

Tickets £15/ Concessions £12.50.

 

AN East Grinstead family whose Lingfield Road home was destroyed by a tumble dryer fire in March has now been offered a house in Newton Avenue.

The family will get the keys to their new housing association home tomorrow, but their new accommodation is bare, and needs to be redecorated, and to have flooring laid throughout.

So Amanda Clark, a friend of the family, is appealing for local residents or businesses to donate paint, carpet, lino and laminate flooring, and/or time to get the house ready for them to move into as soon as possible. The move will reunite them with  Alfie, the family dog, which has been in kennels since the blaze.

“It’s been an emotional and trying three months for the family,” said Amanda, “especially the youngest son who needs stability and routine more than most, due to his special needs.

“I can’t wait to see them settled in a house they can make into a home and start afresh.”

* Any enquiries can be directed to  Amanda Clark, via email: ALPC.campaign@gmail.com or Facebook: www.facebook.com/HouseFireSurvivors. Donations can be made via: www.gofundme.com/FireSurvivors

IN a regular feature on the Town Council website, we will be remembering, on the anniversary of their deaths, the East Grinstead soldiers who died during WWI,  and who are named on the High Street War Memorial.

This month we recall (as recorded on The Roll of Honour website):

Aylmer Vivian JARRETT, DSO

Captain 2nd Battalion, The York and Lancaster Regiment. 16th Division.

Died of wounds 22. 6.15. age 35.

Son of Colonel H.S.Jarrett (CTE) and Mrs. Agnes Jarrett of South Lodge, East Grinstead.

Buried Hop Store Cemetery, Belgium B.2.

Charles Henry KNIGHT

Stoker 1st Class K/15736 Royal Navy. HMS “Victory”

Died at home 23. 6.15. Aged 18.

Son of Frederick and Caroline Knight of 89, Dunning Road, East Grinstead.

Buried Rosskeen Parish Churchyard Extension. Ross and Cromarty, Scotland

Albert John STRIPP

Bombardier 66690 26th Battery Royal Field Artillery

Killed in action on Gallipoli 20. 6.15. Aged 22.

Son of Paul Alonzo and Fanny Stripp 16, Anatola Road, Upper Holloway London. Enlisted in Islington.

Buried Redoubt Cemetery, Helles, Gallipoli, Turkey.