Category: entertainment and leisure news

THAME Players are soon to be hosting another of their popular stand-up comedy show. In My Dog’s Got No Nose, being performed at the Players Theatre on Friday, June 1, Giles Shenton (‘Old Herbaceous’) returns with a ‘thought-provoking’ and ‘wonderful piece of theatre’ about a man preparing to fulfill his lifelong ambition to be a stand-up comedian.

 

In a funny and bittersweet story, Giles takes us on a journey through the events surrounding a stand-up comedian’s first-ever performance. His debut is the fulfilment of a lifelong dream which features stand-up comedy, unrequited love, animal lovers, facts of life, sibling rivalries and mercy killing as just some of the elements. We discover that both man and performance are not quite what they seem.

The play, which ‘…puts one in mind of Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads’, was written by Ron Aldridge, is directed by Simon Downing and produced by Kick in the Head.

Tickets for My dog’s Got No Nose are £12 (no concessions) and are available from Spear Travels, Greyhound Walk, Thame, telephone 01844 217228 or online from www.thameplayers.co.uk

Press comment

‘Giles Shenton held his audience’s attention for nearly two hours; their interest or curiosity in the first half and then to have them fully engrossed in the second before a shocked silence when you could hear a pin drop in the auditorium.’ Alton Herald

‘Being billed as a comedy … understates a wonderful piece of theatre…..This one-man performance, brilliantly put over by Giles Shenton, is so much more than that as it all evolves…..The audience was privileged to be entertained, and have its emotions thoroughly massaged by such a thought-provoking and high quality production.’ Beccles & Bungay Journal

‘Giles Shenton gifts us with another tour de force…catch it while you can!’ Surrey Advertiser

TWIST is a stylish comedy thriller by Miles Tredinnick and directed by award-winning Adam Morley. Presented with echoes of ‘Pulp Fiction’, it will be edgy, slick and cool.

Tarantino meets British farce in this rip-roaring comedy thriller that will have you guessing until the shocking end! This will be the first time Twist has been toured professionally in the UK.

Baroque Theatre are delighted to be collaborating once again with Miles Tredinnick, having toured with his hilarious Up Pompeii in 2014. Miles (who is also known as Riff Regan, lead singer for the band London) is a rock musician as well as a stage and screenwriter. He wrote stage and TV material for Frankie Howerd and was also a writer for Birds of a Feather. His stage plays have been performed worldwide.

Twist is a play about David Woods, a mild-mannered accountant who sees a sensational way of making a fortune by writing a kiss-and-tell biography about his bitchy wife Sarah, the nation’s favourite actress from the hit soap Doctors and Nurses. He then realises that his book will do even better if she is murdered first! Unfortunately a few obstacles get in his way…

BAROQUE THEATRE presents TWIST on Saturday, May 26, 2018 – Tickets £12 (concessions £10) from Spear Travels, 01844 217228 or online
from www.thameplayers.co.uk

SATURDAY’s Friends if the Earth Green Living Event presents a great opportunity to swap goods, sell or buy a second-hand bike, swap seeds or plants and enjoy a variety of information and presentations on Green Living.

 

 

Organiser, Maureen Dyroff, of Thame and Chinnor FOE explained: “A Swap Shop is a unique way of recycling and reusing unwanted goods, things that you don’t use anymore but you don’t want to see ending up in the landfill site. Most of us will have items that we don’t want or use, but they are just too good to throw away. Here is your chance to see them being used by someone else, which is much more satisfying than throwing them out.”

ONLY GOOD CONDITION ITEMS WILL BE ACCEPTED. Just take along your unwanted items – good condition only – on the day, and take away anything you see that you want. You can just bring or you can just take. You don’t have to bring to take or vice versa. Everything is free. Everything is donated. Suitable items could include good condition toys, books, CDs, bric-a-brac, linen, clothes, baby equipment, kitchenware, small electrical items, unwanted gifts. It is requested that no items are taken along after 1pm. Small electrical goods with CE mark only accepted.

Goods left over will be taken to charity shops or clothes banks or recycled if unsuitable for reuse.

BIKE EXCHANGE and Bike Repair unit

There will also be a Bike Exchange on the day. If you want to sell a bike or want to buy a second-hand bike, then go along in the morning to see what is on offer. Bikes to sell can be brought along from 9.30am, clearly labelled with your name, contact details and the asking price. Friends of the Earth charge £5 for every bike sold.

PLANT AND SEED /SEEDLINGS SWAP
Bring a plant or seedlings or seeds or sundries to swap or make a small donation if you have nothing to swap.
GREEN LIVING displays and information will be on show, as well as free craft activities for children.

You can also deposit any of the following items for recycling on the day:
Household batteries, CDs, used postage stamps, foreign coins, mobile phones, printer cartridges and old reading glasses.

Refreshments available throughout the day, including cakes and drinks and a selection of home-made soups.
ENTRANCE FREE
Organised by Chinnor and Thame Friends of the earth. Saturday 12th May, Mill Lane School … 10am – 2pm

MURDERED to Death by Peter Gordon is a hilarious spoof in the best Agatha Christie tradition and Thame Players will be giving their special treatment at the Players Theatre, Thame, from May 8 to 12.

Murdered to Death is a ludicrously funny ‘whodunnit’ story, featuring a cast of stereotypical characters doing stereotypical things. There’s a blustering English colonel with a suitably stiff upper lip, a well-meaning local sleuth who seems to attract murder wherever she goes, the village policeman – a bumbling and appropriately named Inspector Pratt, a shady French art dealer, and a femme fatale. Oh, yes, and of course what whodunnit would be complete without the faithful family butler in a country house setting in the 1930s?

They’re all there, getting caught up in the side-splitting antics which follow the mysterious death of the owner of the house. It soon becomes clear that the murderer isn’t finished yet, but will the murderer be unmasked before anyone else has met their doom, or will audiences die laughing first?

Murdered to Death was written by Peter Gordon, one of the UK’s most popular playwrights. To date, he has written thirteen comedies, a psychological thriller and a one-act comedy. It is part of the ‘Inspector Pratt’ trilogy, which also includes Secondary Cause of Death and Death by Fatal Murder, described variously as ‘deliciously wicked’, ‘hilarious’ and ‘very clever’. These plays have had over 1,000 professional and amateur tours and productions in the UK and overseas, including USA, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

It has been said of Peter Gordon that his writing is ‘Sometimes bizarre and funny, sometimes sad, but is always entertaining’.

Adam Hurst, director of this production for Thame Players, said: “Murdered to Death provides the perfect recipe for a great comedy. If you enjoy watching the play half as much as the cast enjoy performing it, then you are in for a wonderful evening’s entertainment.”

Murdered to Death is being performed at The Players Theatre, Nelson Street, Thame OX9 2DP from Tuesday, May 8, until Saturday, May 12, inclusive at 7.45pm. Tickets: £9, concessions £8, are available from Spear Travels, Greyhound Walk, Thame, telephone 01844 217228 or online from www.thameplayers.co.uk

THE rain held off for runners of all ages and abilities, 250 in total, who took to Lord Williams’s Upper School, Oxford Road, on Saturday afternoon, for a 5k fun run, which saw participants clambering over hay bales, under cargo nets, then negotiating tyres and coloured paint – along with keeping an eye out for an ‘on the run’ panda, monkey and spotted deer!

 

After a 10-minute warm-up to get runners ready to take on their 2.5k or 5k challenge led by Ali Galbraith of Peak Fitness Bootcamp, the event saw pupils from across all the year groups taking part, along with entrants from Thame Runners, Stuart Barr Furniture and Thame Cricket Club.

The first runner to cross the line, Ed Hayes, did so in an impressive twenty-one minutes, thirty-five seconds, and competition was fierce as headteacher David Wybron took on his daughter, in a nail-biting finish!

“We hoped last year we’d have a bigger and better fun run, and we’ve just had one,” commented David. “We’ve had a brilliant event, with colour and obstacles and more people than 2017 entering. Everyone’s had a great time. People have raised a lot of money for the school, so we’re all delighted.”

He added: “Thank you to all those who have helped out today, our volunteers, marshals, local businesses including Lucy Electric who sponsored our runner numbers; to the Lord Williams’s School Parent Association (LWPA) and the school premises team. It’s just been a really fun day.”

The fun run is predicted to raise over £4,000 for the school with sponsorship still to come in.

For more information about Lord Williams’s School, visit http://www.lordwilliams.oxon.sch.uk/

THE founder of the Thame Town Music Festival, John Littler, has been talking to Thame Town Councillor about how a Simple Minds album he bought 35 years-ago, gave him the inspiration to organise his own music festival in Thame.

 

 

John attended Thame Town Council’s meeting on Tuesday (24/04) to bring the council up-to-date with the arrangements so far, for a Thame Town Music Festival and Convention, in June, 2018. No report could do justice to John’s eloquent presentation, so here it is in full:

“A town centre filled with joyous people”

“IN 1982 I bought the recently released album: “Live in the City of Light” by grandiose Scottish stadium fillers, Simple Minds. Not particularly inspiring to me musically but visually a critical inspiration. The inside of the gatefold sleeve, (remember them?), showed a photograph of the Glasgow pomp pop merchants playing to an entire town in Locarno Switzerland; a town centre filled with joyous people bathed in an orange glow as the sun set, communally watching world class artists perform in their own town.

“A mere 35 years later I achieved my version of that night. On July 7, last year we had 8,000 visitors see 58 acts in eight venues all over Thame. We had our free, multi-genre festival that brought the people of Thame out of their homes and into the community and bought people from outside our community into Thame.

“It was a success. Three of the high street business had the best trading day in their history; we had no security incidents, two minor medical calls, no official complaints, we started and finished on time and, like the well bought up children we all are, we cleared up after ourselves.

“Thame is an ambitious town”

“So, for 2018. What’s next? Well, Thame is a growing town, and I believe Thame is an ambitious town; ambitious for a quality of life that aspires not only to a choice of restaurants, not only to a high street where the shops are not all hairdressers and seemingly most importantly, not only where the streets are pot-hole free. No. Ambitious for a cultural life. To be a great place to live. To do our part, we are expanding and aiming higher. We are offering more and going for high quality.

“Our festival is adding three more elements; a classical concert and a songwriter’s competition on the Friday evening, and a music convention to join the main festival on Saturday, July 14. The classical concert will be in St. Mary’s Church with a programme that will take us from Bach to Broadway via Chopin, Rachmaninov, Puccini to Gershwin, Cole Porter and more. I’m thrilled that the we have managed to get renowned soprano, Ann MacKay, who was trained by Schwarzkopf and sung all over the world – Sydney opera house, Royal Albert Hall and now St. Mary’s Thame!

“World class stuff”

“With Ann will be Jack Gibbons, a phenomenal pianist and the world’s leading interpreter of Gershwin. He plays Carnegie Hall and is flying in from the US. This is world class stuff!

“Also, on Friday, in the Barns Centre, we will have our songwriter’s competition final. We have invited songwriters to submit original songs. We have a panel of industry experts who will select the 10 best to come and perform their song and talk about it in front of a live audience. The winner will get to play on the main stage on Saturday and receive significant financial and career support from sponsor, Christopher Ward limited. Can we find the next Ed Sheeran in Thame?

“The third new bit. On Saturday we have added a music industry convention. Again, in the Barns Centre we have Tom Robinson, BBC Radio 6 Music presenter, rock star in his own right and leading advocate of new music. Tom is hosting the convention aimed at helping career musicians understand and navigate the music business. Tom will be hosting panels including Martyn Ware of the Human League and Heaven 17, record producers John Leckie (Radiohead, Stone Roses) and George Shilling ((Steve Winwood, Teenage Fanclub) and also we have artist managers, agents and promoters from the music business. There’s also going to be workshops on song-writing, social media and getting radio play. It’s aimed at people who want help in moving their musical ambitions forward and ‘Saddo’s’ like me who just find the whole world of music and creativity fascinating. I’ll go just to hear the stories and anecdotes.

Eight venues, Main stage, stalls and bars – all for FREE!

“And of course, Saturday is also Thame Town Music Festival day: Again eight venues, a main stage in front of the town Hall, stall holders and bars. And again the festival will be FREE.  Our headliner, this year is Dr Feelgood, the legendary Rhythm and Blues band. We have had over 250 applications to play. We should be able to give 60 of them the opportunity.”

John concluded: ” So, undoubtedly, we are going to throw a huge party in Thame on Saturday, July 14, but it is a party with a purpose. In the same way that an 18-year-old boy in Sheffield was inspired by a photograph on an album sleeve, if we manage to inspire even only one person to follow their music dreams, understand the value of community and be proud of Thame then we will have done our job.”

Visit the Thame Town Music Festival website HERE

THIS year, Thame’s annual Music in the Park on May 6, in Elms Park, will feature an hour dedicated to young performers aged 16 and under. The youngsters, who have been assembled by local music tutor and performer, John Reid-Hansen, will begin their dedicated hour at midday.

Visitors will be able to enjoy solo guitar performances from Bradley Baker, Jomani Naani, George Boydon, Steven Young, Katie Pollard, Joseph Endicott and Anna Pain. In addition, guitar ensembles from the Crown House School and Griffin House School will perform. Youth hour will conclude with a special performance from vocalist Abigail Feek. Abi is a very keen singer and performer and has been a singer of the year finalist for the last three years at Lord Williams’s School. She has recently joined a signing group at Thame Youth Theatre and is a popular singer at local pubs.

Music in the Park Chair, Chris Fram, said: “Music in the Park has always been committed to providing a platform for talented local performers, especially young artists. This year, we’re delighted to be able to incorporate a special ‘Youth Hour’ into the programme. This is in addition of course to the many local artists performing in bands, choirs and dance groups in the rest of the day’s programme across three stages.”

You can now buy tickets for Music in the Park from the following local outlets in Thame: Thame Town Hall, Wally’s Toy Shop, Vintage and Modern Guitars and the Falcon pub.

To keep up-to-date with news of next year’s Music in the Park event, visit the Facebook page LINK HERE or THE website LINK HERE.  Follow Music in the Park on Twitter: @MusicInThePark

PHOTO: Maria Karteris will be performing in the Thame Music Academy slot on the ASM Acoustic Stage

THIS month sees the start of a new season of ‘Midsomer’ guided walking tours of Thame, following their highly successful début last year.

 

 

 

Six trained volunteer tour guides took 200 people on Midsomer tours last year, visiting filming locations in the town centre, used in episodes of the popular ITV series Midsomer Murders. Thame is one of the most frequently used filming locations, with 21 locations in the town centre.

Midsomer Murders is still going strong after 20 years, with new filming taking place in Thame just last year. Becky Reid, Market Town Coordinator at Thame Town Council, commented: “Six and a half million people watch Midsomer Murders in the UK and millions more worldwide. It’s one of the UK’s biggest TV exports, and when people see it on TV, they want to come and visit the beautiful towns and villages of Midsomer, such as Thame.

“While they’re here, they spend money in our restaurants, pubs, hotels, and shops – which is good for the town and its economy.”

Amongst the Thame landmarks featured in the series are Thame Museum, Market House, Rumsey’s Chocolaterie, the Spread Eagle and Swan Hotels, the Coffee House, and the Black Horse brasserie. Thame Town Hall itself has been portrayed as Causton Town Hall. Visitors can pretend they really are outside Causton Town Hall by asking at the Information Centre for a specially produced Causton sign to be hung over the Town Hall sign; perfect for pictures to show your friends and family back home!

Tony Long, coordinator for the tour guides, who are all members of Thame Players, said: “This year the tours are being held on Wednesdays, as this proved to be the most popular day last year, with people from the UK and from overseas, including visitors from Germany, Denmark, Australia, and Canada. We are hoping to beat the number of tour participants this year.”

Tony continued: “The more people we have coming on the tours, the more funds we can donate to worthy causes at the end of the season. Last year we donated over £360 to the Mayor’s Charities and a similar sum to Thame Museum. The guides themselves don’t take any income from the tours, and any funds left go towards admin and next year’s promotion.”

Becky concluded: “These tours are certainly adding a new dimension to tourism in the town, attracting more visitors from the UK and overseas to the historic town of Thame.”

The Midsomer tours were developed from an original tour created by David Dodds, a trustee of Thame Museum. The tours are held under the auspices of 21st Century Thame, an organisation that brings together local businesses, community groups and councils to help keep Thame vibrant and viable as a market town. They began after a successful 21st Century Thame Midsomer Workshop held in Thame two years ago, which recommended a number of promotional ideas to develop Midsomer tourism in the town.

The tours take place weekly until the end of October, on Wednesdays at 11am starting from inside Thame Museum (79 High Street, Thame, OX9 3AE), one of the filming locations. Tickets cost £7.50 each and may be purchased online at www.ticketsource.co.uk/thamemidsomer or from Thame Museum (open 10am – 4pm Tue, Wed, Sat, and 12pm – 4pm Sun). Alternatively, simply turn up on the day and pay the guide. If the advertised tour times don’t fit in with your itinerary, tours can be arranged for groups of four or more people on other days. For more information, contact Tony Long at thamemidsomertours@gmail.com.

An updated version of the Visit Midsomer leaflet, covering locations in Thame and in neighbouring villages is available free of charge at the Town Hall Information Centre and Thame Museum, as well as at local hotels, pubs, shops and cafes. An online version can be downloaded from www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk, www.thamemuseum.org or www.visitmidsomer.com.

A group of three women from Sinaia, Thame’s twin town, have organised a quiz inspired by the format of Thame’s TAL popular event. (more…)

AUDIENCES in Thame can enjoy an award winning performance when White Cobra Productions stage a performance of “Glorious! The True Story of Florence Foster Jenkins, the worst opera singer in the World” this coming Saturday, April 14.

The company recently swept the board at an international drama festival taking virtually all of the top awards winning “Best Play” with the two leading actors, Kate Billingham and Richard Jordan being voted “Best Actress” and “Best Actor” respectively.

The play tells the story of 1940s New York socialite, Florence Foster Jenkins, and her determination to pursue her dream of becoming a top class Opera singer, despite being tone deaf! She employs the initially bemused pianist Cosme McMoon and together they eventually perform a sell out concert at the world famous Carnegie Hall.

As well as the the top prizes, White Cobra also scooped an additional acting award for Lynne O’Sullivan, for the set, and the audience appreciation award where the audience voted for their favourite of the seven performed during the week long festival on the Isle of Man.

Among the companies performing were representatives from Switzerland and Germany, as well as others from across the UK. Glorious Director, Ian Spiby, said: “It’s a wonderful tribute, not only to the production but to the spirit of Florence and her determination to succeed.”

The story of Florence Foster Jenkins was recently an Oscar nominated film starring Meryl Street and Hugh Grant; now this new production brings the story to life on the stage.

MORE INFORMATION & Tickets HERE

SOURCE: Contributed