Category: entertainment and leisure news

HERVEY at the Court of King George 11, will be performed at the Players Theatre in Thame, on Friday, February 2, at 7.45pm.

Described as ‘An amazing show full of humour and pathos’, it becomes very clear watching that there are real similarities to politics today. Nothing changes.

“Hervey” mines a largely forgotten area of royal scandal and one peopled by some colourful personages: King George II, a blustering German; Queen Caroline, his manipulative consul; Sir Robert Walpole, his even more manipulative Prime Minister; his son, the fatuous, reckless Prince of Wales; and Lord Hervey himself, a gilt-edged flunkey, desperate for attention and never receiving enough of it. The play is humorous throughout, and unstuffily intimate – but poignant in its conclusion – even the worst Royals have a human side.

The Hanoverian Royals were notorious for their inability to get on with one another, but in 1737 their squabbling reached grotesque new heights: the Prince of Wales, determined that his wife should not give birth beneath his parents’ roof, smuggled the poor woman – shrieking, fainting, her waters already broken – out of Hampden Court and back to a deserted St James Palace, where she was finally allowed to finish the job between two tablecloths borrowed from the house next door. The sequel to this unpleasantness saw the Prince banished from Court, his father racked by a mid-life crisis and his mother – the vivacious Queen Caroline – die of mortification.

“Hervey” is based on the memoirs of the King and Queen’s Vice Chamberlain, Lord Hervey of Ickworth, a waspish and witty aristocrat, desperate to make his mark as a statesman but ending up as nothing better than their Majesties’ drudge. The play, humorous and pacey, reveals all the nastiness at work among the Royals, as well as the bitter-sweet longings of the man who served them.

Tickets £10 from Spear Travels on 01844 217228 or online from www.thameplayers.co.uk

SINGER/Songwriter, Ramona Rose returns to her home town of Thame to take the Featured Artist spot at the next edition of the First Thursday Music Club at The Stables, on Thursday, February 1.

Ramona Rose, 22, an ex pupil at Lord Williams’s school, is now based in Leeds and, armed with nothing but a six-string and a loop pedal, delivers a compelling fusion of Americana, Rock and Pop-laced bluesy grit and Rock N’ Roll candour. After her appearance at The Towersey Festival last year, her 2018 winter tour follows the release of her latest single ‘Grand Canyon’ in November 2017. The track has featured on UK, US and Australian radio and she enjoys continued support from BBC Introducing in West Yorkshire.

In addition to Ramona Rose’s Feature Spot, Odette Mitchell, Roger and Wendy, 2am Blue and Ignition are already booked in to play to ensure a fabulously eclectic bill!

The First Thursday Music Club still offers the opportunity for artists to play live in front of a warm and appreciative audience, maintaining the ‘Open Mic’ section of the evening where slots will always be available in the first hour on a first come, first served basis with player sign-up by 7.30. The club has a full house PA system with keyboard, bass amp, guitar amp and jazz drum kit (bring breakables!) all set up on stage and ready to go.

Another eclectic evening is guaranteed and, don’t forget, it’s FREE entry!

Ramona Rose links:
https://ramonaroseuk.wixsite.com/music/blog
https://www.facebook.com/ramonaroseuk/
https://soundcloud.com/ramonaroseuk

POPULAR quiz master, Sue Boyle will be the leading a Winter Quiz Night in support of the Thame Youth Memorial and Thame-Sinaia Friendship Association. The event will take place at the Barley Hill School Hall, Ludsden Grove, in Thame on Friday, January 26, starting at 7pm for 7:30 pm. People of Thame and neighbouring villages are invited to form teams of six and to bring their own drinks and nibbles.

The entry fee is £5 per person and there will beraffle prizes to be won. To book a table, ring 01844 215 178 or 07764 85 49 49.

Follow Thame-Sinaia Friendship Association on www.facebook.com/thamesinaia and Thame Youth Memorial www.facebook.com/ThameYouthMemorial

Marius Ciortan, Thame-Sinaia Association’s Secretary, said: “We are delighted to be able to join our efforts with those of Thame Youth Memorial in organising this quiz night for another year. This quiz will help us to meet some of the transport costs for our people exchanges between our twinned towns.”

SINGER Rebecca Poole, whose live appearances have included supporting Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, will be performing in Thame later in the month. With her dazzling musicians, she will play Peggy Lee, Nina Simone and the great American songbook at The Players Theatre in Thame on Saturday, January 27.

Sensational reviews of Rebecca’s performances followed the Jools Holland tour in 2016, and recently her long-awaited debut album Diamond in the Dust‘was released.

As a singer/songwriter, Rebecca creates alongside Grammy Award-winning producer Andy Wright, famed for his records with Imelda May, Chrissie Hynde, Simple Minds and Simply Red. Often referred to as ‘pop noir’ Rebecca’s distinctive sultry stylings and song-writing skills have led to collaborations with Jamiroquai’s Matt Johnson and Ian Barter. Rebecca’s latest singles have been championed by Radio 2, BBC 6 Music and BBC London. Combining her own unique style with nuances of Nina Simone, Nancy Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Henry Mancini, Rebecca offers playful swagger with hugely entertaining onstage appeal.

With her popularity continuing to grow, Rebecca has performed to 90,000 people at Wembley, guested on The Royal Variety Show, performed with Jamie Cullum at BBC Radio 2’s Cheltenham Festival, played to packed houses at London’s premier venues like Ronnie Scott’s, the 606 club Chelsea, Pizza Express Jazz Room Soho, as well as Formula 1 events and the London Lifestyle Awards.

Only recently Rebecca performed as a guest singer on Richard Branson’s Necker Island, opening for Lana Del Rey, accompanied by the ultra-cool guitar wizardry of Hugh Turner, the wonderfully talented Stuart Henderson on trumpet, flugel horn and percussion, and the masterful acoustic bass of Raph Mizraki.

Expect a sublime selection of classic jazz, Latin and mainstream modern jazz standards plus Rebecca’s own beautifully crafted romantic ballads offering a seductive hint of the ‘Femme Fatale’.

Tickets are £12 and available from Spear Travels, Greyhound Walk, Thame, telephone 01844 217228 or online from thameplayers.co.uk

ADVANCE tickets for Saturday evening’s screening of Dunkirk by Thame Cinema 4 All, are now sold out. There will be a few for sale on the door and TC4A have added an extra screening on Sunday at 7pm.

Advance tickets for Sunday are now on sale at thamecinema.org.uk. Anyone who has already bought a ticket for Saturday and prefers to swap to Sunday is invited to email films@thamecinema.org.uk and this will be arranged.

Film details HERE

THE team behind Thame’s annual Music in the Park, has recently awarded grants to two local organisations. Barley Hill Church received a grant of £250 to help fund Thame’s Christmas Eve “Carols Around the Tree” event, and Thame Concert Band was awarded a grant of £300 to help it boost recruitment and purchase new music.

Cheques were presented to both organisations by Chris Fram, Chair of Music in the Park’s organising committee.

Michael Lindsay of Barley Hill Church said: “We work with other groups such as Thame Concert Band to organise Carols Around the Tree on Christmas Eve, which, every year brings pleasure to some 500 – 600 Thame residents. This grant will help us provide everyone with a glass of mulled wine to help warm them up.”

Marie Bradley, Chair of Thame Concert Band, said: “Thame Concert Band is a community-based wind band which has been a vital part of the local music scene for twenty-five years. We welcome musicians of all ages, from school children to very senior citizens, and of all abilities. This grant will help us increase our recruitment activities and buy some new music.”

Plans for Music in the Park 2018 are well underway and local organisations that meet the criteria will once again be able to apply for grants.

Grants to local organisations

Music in the Park initially directed proceeds from its event to improving the facilities in Elms Park, where the event takes place. Music in the Park contributed to lighting along the path through the park and bought a commemorative bench to help people sit and enjoy the park. In 2016, Music in the Park announced it would also award a limited number of grants to local organisations that have a clear link to Thame or the surrounding area and meet Music in the Park’s key objective of assisting in the provision of facilities in the Thame area in the interests of art, music or recreation, or other leisure time occupation of individuals or organisations that live or operate in the Thame area.

To keep up-to-date with news of Music in the Park 2018, visit the Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/MusicInTheParkThame or website: www.musicinthepark.org.uk

YES! Following last year’s fantastic, free, inaugural event, the Thame Town Music Festival will return on Saturday, July 14, 2018. (more…)

HISTORY buffs may appreciate having their stockings filled with the latest books from Oxfordshire historian Julie Ann Godson, who recently enthralled her audience at the Thame Barns Centre.

Secret love affairs, murder, blackmail, poisoning and extortion: most of us enjoy a good scandal. And it’s even more fun when it involves our so-called betters. “Scandal in High Society Oxfordshire: twenty tales of toffs in trouble” tells a selection of jaw-dropping true stories of shenanigans in high places, from the Tudor period right up to the modern age.

Few readers will fail to be impressed by the sheer variety of ways in which the upper classes of the county have contrived over the centuries to behave badly, and usually to get away with it. Available on Amazon.co.uk at £10.99

“1066: Oxfordshire and the Norman Conquest – why it all started and finished in our county” is an entertaining romp through the events of the Norman Conquest in Oxfordshire. From Edward the Confessor’s birth in Islip through to the formal surrender in Wallingford after the Battle of Hastings, modern Oxfordshire provided the backdrop to major events that shaped the destiny of the whole nation. Available on Amazon.co.uk at £8.49

Julie Ann Godson studied modern history at the University of Oxford and worked for twenty years in publishing and design. She now lives in a country village near Oxford and makes regular appearances talking about her research. Her first book, The Water Gypsy: how a Thames fishergirl became a viscountess, was published in 2014, and tells the Cinderella story of a humble village girl who married an Anglo-Irish aristocrat in 1766. Some readers may remember Julie Ann’s entertaining talk on the subject at the Barns Centre in May of this year. See www.julieanngodson.com

Julie will be back at the Barns Centre next autumn.

OVER 60 of the independent businesses in Thame are getting together to run ‘Christmas Shopping Saturday’ on December 2, an event to promote the town centre as THE place to do your Christmas shopping!

There are over 20 offers and activities for shoppers to engage with throughout the town, including freebies, discounts, drinks while you shop, and vouchers for money off. Anyone who makes a purchase in one of the participating shops between December 2-20, will also have the opportunity to share this on Social Media, using the hashtag #ChristmasInThame of course, for a chance to win a £30 voucher for a town centre independent shop of their choice (T&Cs apply).

Local shops ‘deserve our support’

The event is being run by 21st Century Thame, a Partnership between business, local organisations and the local authorities, including Thame Town Council, who together, facilitate projects which enhance the town for residents, businesses and visitors alike. Sue Martin-Downhill, Chair of 21stCT said: “We all love our independent shops that give Thame high street such a special flavour, and they all deserve our support at this, their most important trading time of the year.”

Why shop local?

This event links into of Small Business Saturday 2017, a grass roots campaign, which encourages consumers to shop local and support small businesses in their community. The challenge is to do as much as your Christmas shopping in Thame, as you possible can. Remember: Shop Locally – Why? Because, did you realise that of every £1 you spend with a local, independent business, between 50p-70p circulates back into your local economy?

Flyers with more information are available at the Town Hall, and from each retailers involved. However, new deals are arriving all the time so shoppers are encouraged to follow the event online on the new ‘Christmas in Thame’ Facebook page.