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PERSHORE CIVIC SOCIETY NEWS
AUTUMN 2014
PERSHORE
PERSHORE
CIVIC
CIVIC SOCIETY NEWSLETTER
LETTER TO AN UNKNOWN SOLDIER
Pershore High School students in Years 8,9 10 and 12 have been involved in contributing to a Living Memorial marking the centenary of
Worcester Parkway plan
Who would like to save 25 minutes travelling to London? Who would
like to park with ease and catch trains to Birmingham and Bristol from
a new railway station located between Stoulton and Whittington?
Visitors to Pershore Town Hall on 20th October will have learned how,
after May 2017, this might be possible. Located on a new roundabout
on the B4084 in Norton, the proposals for a new Parkway Railway
station with 500 car spaces, have already been submitted to Network
Rail for approval. A planning application will be submitted during Spring
2015. The proposed cost of the new station is £17.6million of which
£7.5 million has already been provisionally secured from the
Government’s Local Growth Fund. If all goes according to plan
construction will start in the Winter of 2015. What might these proposals
mean for Pershore Railway station if they go ahead? Already faced with
the possibility of reduced frequency of services and challenged by its
lack of parking, we can all too well imagine that, as the new Parkway
Station is being built, the case for the closure of Pershore Station is
also being constructed! Those with views should contact Worcestershire
County Council. Pershore Station’s status, serving the second largest
(and still expanding!!) town on the Cotswold Line deserves to be
considered. Might the new Parkway Station be a threat to Pershore
Station’s viability? More of this emerging story in due course...
‘Remember
The Fallen’ visit
Pershore Abbey and Royal District Naval Association welcomed guests
from the local "Remember the Fallen" Association on Saturday 11th
October on their inaugural group outing. Dr Judy Dale, Church Warden
of the Abbey was on hand to provide information and the group were
delighted to be shown memorabilia about the War Memorial including
the history of Pershore's War Memorials carried out by the late
Marshall Wilson which can be purchased from the Abbey. Sandra
Taylor's website http://www.rememberthefallen.co.uk/ provides
people across Worcestershire the opportunity to research relatives
whose name appears on a war memorial.
If you are interested in becoming a friend of “Remember the Fallen”
or wish to donate to this resource, please contact Sandra by email at
[email protected] or by post at Remember the
Fallen, 3 Hunt Avenue, Worcester, WR4 0QW. Pershore RNA's
Centenary Commemorative book on Pershore Men during the Great
War has this week gone to the printers and will shortly be available for
purchase with all profit going to the town's Poppy Appeal.
THANKS - to all the
lovely people who have
contributed to this issue!
This issue of our newsletter
is sponsored by
DO YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO JOIN PERSHORE CIVIC SOCIETY?
Why not offer them this edition of the Newsletter to read and fill in the form below?
APPLICATION FORM
Single membership £10
Joint Membership £15
the beginning of WW1. There is a statue of an unknown soldier on Paddington Station and he is reading a letter. The Living Memorial comprises letters to
him such as the one he is reading. Many famous names in Literature have contributed to this memorial and their letters can be read on the website
www.1418NOW.org.uk. Our students have written letters in English lessons and have uploaded them to the website so they can be read alongside letters
from Stephen Fry, Children’s Laureate Malorie Blackman and many others. Below is a handful of quotations from the moving letters students have written...
‘...you will always
be remembered for
your bravery and
victory. Don’t let
your hope die out,
stand strong and
don’t be defeated
by evil….’
‘Dearest Friend, I wasn’t
really sure what to do
without you...I’m still not
really, we left together,
planned to come home
together… Nothing lasts
forever, that’s what you
used to say’
‘You are not unknown, not to those who loved you,
not to those who made your life special, not to
those who were your friends, not to those who pass
you on the platform… You are not unknown to us.’
‘Though you are unknown to the thousands of
crowds you attract, the thousands of people you
stand for, you are not unknown. Dubbed ‘unknown’
by someone neither you nor I know, you stand for
thousands of men, all with a legend to their name.’
‘It’s been almost two years now. You must tell
me all about your travels when you get
back...I hope you come back very soon Eddy.
I don’t know how much longer I can go on
without seeing your warming face.’
Under 21 £3
Under 16 FREE
First Member .........................................................................................................................................
Address ..................................................................................................................................................
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Postcode ........................... Telephone ................................................................................................
Email .......................................................................................................................................................
Second Member at same address ..................................................................................................
Please tick method of payment STANDING ORDER q CHEQUE q CASH q
Please return this form to: Fred Noble 28, Three Springs Road Pershore WR10 1HS
DISCLAIMER Opinions expressed by contributors to this publication do not
necessarily reflect those of the editor or of Pershore Civic Society.
Visit to the Houses of Parliament
Some 20 members of the Civic society enjoyed a
visit to the Houses of Parliament on 15th October
at the very kind invitation of Harriet Baldwin MP.
They enjoyed a guided tour, and were also able
to witness a live debate in the House of
Commons. The Speaker did not however open
up the debate to those in the visitors gallery!
A busy and enjoyable day was had by all – a
repeat visit next year perhaps?
For letters to the Editor please email:
[email protected]
P L E A S E V I S I T U S A T W W W. P E R S H O R E C I V I C S O C I E T Y. O R G . U K
WW1 CENTENARY PARADE
The WW1 Centenary Parade was held in Broad Street on 4 July
organised by The Pershore & District Branch of the Royal British
Legion. The welcome was given by Lt Col Payne, President of
Pershore Branch of the Royal British Legion followed by an address
and a prayer by Rev Mark Jennings. Bethany Ireland aged 14 from
Pershore High School read a very moving poem of remembrance
and the Pershore Roll of Honour was read by Lt Cmdr Charles
Hamlin, President of Pershore Royal Naval Association.
The parade was attended by the Chairman of
Worcestershire County Council Cllr. Pam Davey,
the Vice Chairman of Wychavon District Council
Cllr. Val Wood together with the Mayor and Mayoress of Pershore
Cllr. Tony Rowley and Mrs. Rowley. Many residents of Pershore
watched and listened, making it a very poignant occasion. I was
struck during the parade by the incredible ability of those old and
young to stand so straight and so still for so long!
P L E A S E V I S I T U S A T W W W. P E R S H O R E C I V I C S O C I E T Y. O R G . U K
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Tour of Britain through Pershore
Enormous crowds welcomed the amazing spectacle of cyclists competing in Stage 4 of the “Tour of
Britain” coming through Pershore on 10th Pershore did the event proud. BBC Television coverage featured
the town. Business flourished, and a new generation of young people were no doubt inspired to take up the sport.
The Plum Festival
David Rudkin
Toby Amies
Penda’s Fen
Many will remember the cutting edge shop window developed by
the BBC for British Drama called “Play for Today”.
Over 300 programmes were produced between 1970 and 1984. On
the 2nd October 2014 Number 8 and the Civic Society jointly hosted
the showing of “Penda’s Fen” - forty years since its original screening
as a ‘Play for Today’ on TV. In 2011 “Time Out” voted “Penda’s Fen”
one of Britain’s 100 best films. It was shot exclusively on location in
Pinvin and the surrounding areas of Worcestershire.
The play has two main characters: Stephen (played by Spencer
Banks), the teenage son of the village vicar, and the beautifully shot
landscape we know so well: stretching from the Cotswold escarpment
to the Malvern Hills. The playwright David Rudkin, who lives locally,
attended the screening at Number 8 and very kindly fielded questions,
posed by guest moderator Toby Amies, and the audience. Toby, son
of Civic Society members Michael and Elizabeth Amies, has made his
career in film and his probing questions and David Rudkin’s candour
brought the evening to life following the film itself. As Toby said: “It’s
not every day one gets to compere the screening of a psycho drama
touching on themes of authority, tradition, hypocrisy, landscape, art,
sexuality, and paganism in one’s home town!! And then interview the
playwright!”
David Rudkin’s career spans theatre, TV, radio, cinema and musical
theatre. Following the success of the Penda’s Fen evening, it is hoped
that David might be tempted back to Pershore for further screenings
of some of his other works, and interviews compered by the
knowledgeable Toby Amies.
What can be said about the fabulous “Plum Festival” that has not
already been said? Not even the ghastly weather on Bank Holiday
Monday could dampen the enthusiasm of all those taking part, or visiting
the event from far and wide. Your editor retreated from the rain to enjoy
“The Plum Jam” at The Pickled Plum, and was treated to musical
performances from some unbelievably talented local young people hidden gems which Pershore should embrace and be proud of.
Pershore Baptist Church
PCS Wolverton Hall visit
More than forty Civic Society members and friends attended a
fascinating talk by Rev. Mark Jennings, the Baptist minister, about
the history of the Baptist church in Pershore.
During the disruption in the Church of England after the Civil War, a
number of itinerant preachers appeared, while clergymen were expelled
from the established church because of their Puritan convictions. Fear
of persecution meant that dissenting groups had to meet in secret. It
was thought that one of these groups met in Tiddesley Woods.
The Baptist church in Pershore, one of the oldest in the country, was
founded in 1658. In 1764 it was reported by the Abbey church wardens
that a ‘conventicle’ was kept by a man called John Ward who lived in
a small house between the Abbey and St Andrews. Local inhabitants
attended regular Sunday afternoon services there. On 16th July 1700
the Broad street site was finally acquired by the minister, Rev Timothy
Thomas, with the backing of a prosperous local businessman, Samuel
Rickards, Snr. Rev Thomas died in 1716. He and his son, also Timothy
Thomas, were buried in a spectacular tomb which can be seen in the
Abbey grounds (see below).
By the end of the 1700s, the church was flourishing. Three cottages
were converted into a meeting house and the first manse was built in
1742. The church continued to expand, with changes made to the
building, and upper and lower schoolrooms added in 1889. One of the
ministers was Rev. John Ash, the 18th century lexicographer who wrote
‘The New and Complete Dictionary of the English Language.’ A Civic
Society plaque, in his memory, is on the wall of the manse.
Mark ended by saying that although there had been factions within
and between churches in Pershore throughout the years, he felt that
now congregations from the churches were becoming closer. Setting
up and running the Food Bank was an example of how people from
all the Pershore churches have worked together.
The Society was particularly fortunate, having asked the owner
if we might visit his Queen Anne House, Wolverton Hall, to be
received in such a generous manner by Mr Coleridge.
The whole visit was delightful with the sun shining as we were made
welcome through the house to the terrace at the rear. Mr Coleridge
talked about the history of the house and we then proceeded through
the ground and first floor rooms of this magnificent house which has
been sensitively restored by Mr Coleridge. Wolverton Hall is Grade II*
listed, built in 1709 and was once the home of the Acton family.
The house is built in red brick, with white painted quoins (corner
stones) and elegant windows which span across all floors, giving light
and glorious views to every room.
There followed a tour of the grounds and the recently renovated barn.
The visit concluded with coffee on the terrace and an opportunity to
have further conversation with Mr Coleridge.
Keep Pershore Beautiful
The Litter Pick Day organized by Pershore Town Council on Saturday
4th August involved not only councillors but members of the public
together with at least three members of the Civic Society showing civic
pride: Val Wood, Tony Rowley, Peter Farrall