A man from Thame, along with three others, has been charged with the murder of Luciano Dos Santo who died after he was hit by a car and stabbed in Southfield Road, Oxford on Wednesday last week, March 6, 2019.
Safeen Abdullah Karimi, aged 27, of Hode Garth, Thame, was arrested along with Michael Yemane, aged 20, of South Bridge Row, Oxford, Welid Solomon, aged 25, of Field Avenue, Oxford and Sasan Mohammed Khalid, aged 19, of no fixed abode.
All four appeared at Oxford Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, March 9, and were remanded in custody to appear at Oxford Crown Court today, March 11.
The victim was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital following the attack, but did not survive his injuries.
Mr Dos Santos’s family have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers.
ONE hundred swimmers, in 18 teams, took part in the seventh Thame Swimathon at Thame Leisure Centre on Sunday, March 3, made possible by generous local sponsors – Thame Leisure Centre, Haddenham Beer Festivals Trust and Aston Hearing ,who covered the costs to hire the swimming pool. Most of the costs of the medals awarded to the participants were covered by Ignite Sport.
The teams swam 2,311 swimming pool lengths, which is the equivalent of almost 36 miles.
The fun and fundraising event was organised by the Rotary Club of Thame & District, and was supported by Thame Lions and Thame Inner Wheel, as well as family members and friends of Thame Rotarians.
At the end of each hourly swimming session, the Mayor of Thame Ann Midwinter, presented medals to all the swimmers. Ann said: “I would like to thank the Rotary Club of Thame & District for organising such a brilliant event. It was such a pleasure to see young and old having such a healthy and enjoyable time with the support of the families who came along to the swimathon to cheer, and help raise money for charity too.”
Thame Swimming Club entered seven teams – a great opportunity to raise funds for their own club. One of their teams swam the biggest number of lengths of all 18 teams, 218.
Barley Hill School participated with five teams this year. Jo Sackett, Barley PTFA Trustee, said: “Yet another fantastic event organised and run by the Rotary. The five teams from Barley Hill School thoroughly enjoyed themselves, raised a phenomenal amount of money and can’t wait for next year!”
All teams and the charities supported:
Thame Swimming Club 7 teams
Dippers and Divers 2 teams
Barley Hill School 5 teams
Team Ice Cream
Team Rapid 6
Team 50
Wheatley Park School Interact Club
Graham Colverson, President of the Rotary Club of Thame & District, swam with his son and four grandchildren. Graham said: “Now in its seventh year, Thame Swimathon has become a major annual event for our Rotary Club. It provides an opportunity for many youngsters and adults to have fun and raise money, which is divided between local charities supported by our club, and the participants own preferred charities. I would like to thank everyone who has taken part this year, including the sponsors – not only those that help teams raise money but also those that support the cost of running the event – without them, we would be unable to run this popular activity.”
The total amount raised so far by the teams exceeds £4,000. The public can still donate online towards their favourite teams by March 17. The links to the teams’ fundraising pages can be found at www.thame.rotary1090.org at the Thame Swimathon section. More photos capturing the event can be found on www.facebook.com/thamerotary
YOUTH groups across Oxfordshire will be invited to bid for part of a £1m fund over two years, and encouraged to find match funding from their local communities. The money is part of the recent budget agreed by Oxfordshire county Council who have said that this money would help existing projects expand and new ones get off the ground.
Image courtesy of Thame Youth Cafe
The funds would be administered by a cross-party working group of Oxfordshire’s county councillors, chaired by Councillor Mark Gray and bidding for the new grant fund – £500,000 in 2019/20 and the same in 2020/21 – will be opened in April.
Councillor Nigel Hudspeth said: “We want to try to reach out to all areas of the county, recognising good existing youth activities and offering additional support and offering help where there are gaps in services. I am sure local people with energy and ideas will come forward.”
Voluntary sector welcome for extra youth spending
Jodie Lloyd-Jones, chief executive of Oxfordshire Youth, said: “Community-run youth services make a huge contribution to society and compliment statutory services, but more importantly they provide a safe space, a trusting relationship and offer young people a sense of belonging.
“As young people grow up in a society that has moved online, a physical space for young people to go and build relationships, and feel connected to the wider community is more important than ever before.
“The youth clubs and organisations that are currently operating across the county provide an essential service for children and young people. As a charity at the heart of these organisations, we see the impact that is made on a daily basis.
“It is really positive that Oxfordshire County Council has found a way to support these services, the more recognition we have of the value of voluntary sector youth services, the more investment we will be able to bring to the county.”
THAME opened its doors this week to the town’s first chicken shop, a second take-away business to add to the very successful and national award-winning Atalay’s Kebab van.
The Mayor of Thame, Ann Midwinter officially opened the Thame Fried chicken, in Swan Walk, Thame, on Wednesday, March 7, and immediately the queue to be served lead out of the door.
You can watch the video of the official opening of Thame Fried Chicken on the shop’s facebook HERE
THIS year’s Annual Thame Town Meeting will be an opportunity for Thame residents to express their views and ask questions of their councillors about any issue in the town.
The meeting will be hosted by Thame Town Council and whether you have a major concern or a simple query, Councillors from Town, District and County, and staff will be available to answer your questions and address your concerns. There are all sorts of things going on in Thame, so it should be a lively meeting. The town council has made it clear that the annual Town Meeting is not the usual meeting of the Town Council, but a meeting of the electorate. So, unlike normal Council meetings, there is no need to submit your questions beforehand. Instead you can just turn up and take part in the Open Forum.
In its invitation to the electorate, the Town Council has said: “The meeting is also an opportunity for us to reflect on what the town and Council have achieved in the past year and our aims for the future. The Mayor, Cllr Ann Midwinter, will chair the meeting in true David Dimbleby / Fiona Bruce fashion. If we can’t answer your question straightway, we will guarantee to provide an answer, in writing, later.
“So please do join us for the Annual Town Meeting in the Town Hall Upper Chamber on Tuesday, March 26, from 7.30pm.
COMEDY night at the Thame Players theatre on Friday, April 5, will feature George Egg the DIY Chef and there’s a special offer for Thame Food Festival newsletter subscribers!
Headline act for the night, George Egg – Anarchist Cook – will be presenting his sell-out Edinburgh show ‘DIY Chef’ – a totally unique combination of stand-up comedy with real food, cooked live on stage using power tools, and then the audience eats it at the end! Here’s a video trailer: https://youtu.be/AJobIxdi68w
Jay Rayner, Food Critic of The Observer, described the show as “Brilliantly funny” and The Independent said: “The wonderfully talented George Egg is genuinely unique.” As well as the comedy, there’ll be doing a spot of fundraising for Comic Relief.
Tickets are normally priced at £12 and available from 01844 217228 or www.thameplayers.co.uk. However if you use the code ‘APRIL’ at checkout on the web site you’ll get tickets for only £10!
Double the fun!
Also appearing on this comedy double-bill, will be Tom Neenan: ‘It’s Always Infinity’. Tom’s fourth sell-out Edinburgh show fuses slick presentation with an engaging story and plenty of solid laughs!
THAMES Valley Police have warned that residents in the Chinnor area may see an increased police presence after a burglary was attempted on 01/03/19 in Greenwood Avenue.
The neighbourhood team have conducted house-to-house enquiries and a CCTV trawl, and officers continue to look for any lines of enquiry. Anyone with any information regarding this incident, including CCTV footage, is asked to call 101 quoting reference 513 01/03/19.
To help prevent YOUR property being burgled, it is suggested that you follow the simple steps below:
Home security advice
*Lock all front and rear doors and windows at night and when you are out. * Keep all valuables and keys, including car keys, out of sight and out of reach of windows and letterboxes. *Double check your vehicle is locked too. *Ensure side gates are locked to prevent access to the rear of your property. *Move bins away from side walls and fences. * Keep ladders and tools stored away. Don’t leave them outside where they could be used to break into your home
Are you going on holiday?
*Please do not advertise that you are going away on social media – wait until you get home to upload your holiday snaps! * Check that your home insurance policy, as some may pay out less or not at all, if you have posted that you are away on social media. * Use a timer switch to make your house look occupied, even when it isn’t. *Ask someone you trust to keep an eye on your house while you are away. Don’t leave spare keys in obvious places such as under doormats and plant pots.
BBOWT, Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust, has received notice from High Speed 2 (HS2) that they intend to carry out clearance works at one of the Trust’s nature reserves, Calvert Jubilee.
Turtle Dove – Image Courtesy of Dawn Monrose
Telsha Arora, BBOWT’s Media and Campaigns Manager, said: “The clearance would involve a huge area of approximately 200 hectares. We have met with representatives of HS2 to make it clear that the scale and timing of the works will have a devastating effect on wildlife, particularly as it is the start of nesting season. We have also sent a formal letter to HS2 requesting more specific details of the areas to be cleared, how this clearance will take place and the mitigation that will be put in place to compensate for any damage to wildlife.
‘Unnecessary and unwarranted destruction..’
“We believe that the works will cause unnecessary and unwarranted destruction of important breeding and feeding habitats for a range of species. We therefore strongly object to the proposals as they stand.”
BBOWT’s Head of Planning, Policy and Advocacy, Matthew Stanton, said: “We are currently engaging with HS2 in what we hope will be constructive discussions that accommodate both parties’ interests. What we can be certain of is, that BBOWT will not be facilitating any works that may be harmful to wildlife.”
‘We will refuse access…’
Matthew Stanton continued: “If we do not consider that the mitigation proposed by HS2 is adequate we will, to the extent relevant legislation allows us to, refuse access to BBOWT’s land until HS2 produce a scheme of works and mitigation that addresses our concerns and respects the needs of wildlife.”
Questions in parliament
In response to a question in Parliament recently from Cheryl Gillam MP for Amersham and Chesham, Nusrat Ghani, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for Transport responded: “”HS2 Ltd and their contractors will comply with all relevant legislation, HS2Environmental Minimum Requirements, as well as any applicable Protected Species Licences when dealing with ecology within HS2 limits. The following protection measures are in place for vegetation clearance activities:
“For all birds during nesting season, a “Permit to Clear” system will apply. A suitably qualified ecologist will assess existing survey data and then verify this with surveys of the site in advance of the vegetation clearance taking place. Once the area has been confirmed to be free of nesting birds, then clearance can commence.
“For other wildlife at the Calvert Jubilee Local Nature Reserve, the “Permit to Clear” system is applicable. However, should the area be known to contain Protected Species, such as Great Crested Newt and Badgers, then the HS2 Ltd contractors will work in accordance with the HS2 Ltd organisational licences for these species.
“Where surveys identify other Protected Species present, then contractors would undertake works in accordance with their legal protection and, where necessary, apply for mitigation licences from Natural England. Mitigation measures will be carried out under the supervision of suitably qualified ecologists where necessary.”
For the latest updates, visit Calvert Jubilee’s web page and read more about HS2, the impacts on wildlife along the route through Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, and what BBOWT is doing to protect wildlife HERE.
THE young people of Thame and the surrounding area have, yet again, stepped up to the challenge to offer visitors to Music in the Park a packed programme of talent.
Anoushka Bhattacharya
Music in the Park is committed to providing a platform for young talent in the area and more youngsters than ever will be performing at this year’s event.
The time set aside for the Youth Programme, which takes place on the Acoustic Stage, has been extended this year. The first session starts at 11.40 and runs through to 13:00 and features a guitar ensemble as well as a range of solo performers. Then at 15:00, ‘Youth Rocks’, a rock band made up of 10 and 11 year-olds olds will perform Sweet Child Of Mine. This will be followed by more soloists, including Isaac Forward, aged 10, who is currently starring on stage at The Playhouse Theatre, London.
Local guitar, ukulele and drum teacher John Reid-Hansen, who is coordinating the programme, said: “These children, aged 10 to 16, aren’t just our future, they are already an integral part of our current music scene and are having a tremendous impact on live music in Thame. So do come along and check out the youth of Thame on the Acoustic Stage.”
USA 2018, 100 minutes, 15 certificate Directed by Bjorn Runge, starring Glenn Close, Jonathan Pryce, Christian Slater, Max Irons
IN her acceptance speech for her Best Actress Oscar last weekend, Olivia Colman expressed regret that she was in competition against Glenn Close, one of her screen idols, who was up for her seventh Best Actress nomination for her role in The Wife. And it is one of the most exceptional performances of Close’s long and exceptional career.
In the film, she plays Joan Castleman, wife of celebrated man of letters, Joseph (Pryce). As the film opens, we learn that Joseph has been awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. The couple travel to Stockholm for the award ceremony, but what should be a celebration is instead a crisis point for Joan: Joseph is vain, preening, needy, repeatedly rejoicing to others that he couldn’t have done it without her; that fortunately for him she has no interest in writing.
He flagrantly chases after younger women (infidelity is evidently a recurring feature of the marriage) and tortures their beloved son, Max, (Irons) with faint praise for his own writing efforts. And yet Joan is perennially and stoicly on hand, ensuring that he has taken his pills, that he has eaten, that everything is in its place. But she is also evidently suppressing considerable rage and frustration. As events unfold, Joan is forced to reappraise her life and her marriage, her own thwarted literary ambitions, and the legacies of her decades-long selfless dedication to her husband’s work and career – a process perhaps catalysed by the insistent enquiries of Slater’s Nathaniel, a creepy journo and wannabe biographer of Joseph, who has joined the Nobel bandwagon.
The story moves between past and present, going back to their meeting at college in the 1950s, when Joan was also a conspicuously gifted aspiring writer. Close is outstanding as a complex and dignified woman grappling with long suppressed emotions, with regret and anguish, with love and loathing. Pryce, too, is reliably excellent as the insufferable narcissist Joseph. View the trailer HERE.
