IT always amazes me how many musical people there seem to be in the village, so when I saw the information about The Charmouth and Bridport Pop and Rock Choir I had to pass it on, writes Charmouth correspondent Neil Harvey. I think Edward Jacobs
A voluntary community company is celebrating after winning a commission of more than £12,000. Bridport Enterprise Support-ing Training Ltd (BEST) is receiving the money for the well-established Aspire project to help young people into work, training
Inspired by the Great British Bake Off – from Glenn Cosby, former 2013 bake-off contestant Ingredients 300g baking margarine 300g soft brown sugar 3 medium eggs 200g self-raising flour 100g cocoa 2 tsp baking powder 2 tbsp
A care home has launched a new and free cookbook designed for people living alone or couples. Broadwindsor House recently worked with Weymouth College to produce the cookbook, which is filled with nourishing recipes. The care home officially
Award-winning physical comedy theatre company Le Navet Bete are touring to Dorset through Artsreach this October, and are set to wow audiences with their biggest show to date, Once Upon A Time In A Western. A south-west success story who originally
The Lyric Theatre’s Puppet Club will start again with a new course running every Monday for six weeks from 15th September to 20th October, 5pm-6.30pm. Learn how to make your very own puppet over the course of 5-6 weeks, led by puppet maker Holly
The Friends of Beaminster Festival continue their series of concerts and welcome back pianist Madalina Rusu. She will be giving a solo piano recital at 7.30pm on Saturday September 27 in St Mary’s Church, Beaminster. Her programme will consist
Devon-based artist trio Hive will treat visitors to Lyme Regis to a three-week long exhibition of their new works. The exhibition will be hosted by the Courtyard Gallery at The Town Mill from September 30 to October 20. The award-winning group
Acclaimed singing ensemble Northern Harmony will perform in Wootton Fitzpaine Village Hall as part of a two-date Dorset leg of a European tour. The sixteen singers, hailing from Vermont USA, form the unique music vocal ensemble Northern Harmony
New volunteers are needed for the town library’s royal voluntary service which delivers books to those struggling to visit the library themselves. Bridport Library has a team of dedicated volunteers who visit various homes on a regular basis, delivering
For one week only fans of Roots Music, the general term for traditional styles, can listen to their favourites on our own local radio station Bridport FM. This week Bridport has its own contribution to the on-air music mix when on September 21,
The Living Tree cancer support group in the town is hosting a mini-concert and tea party on October 3 at 2pm to promote Colostomy Awareness Day. This is the first time the Colostomy Association has had such a day and as there are several of the
Acclaimed poet Wendy Cope will read a number of her works at The Marine Theatre in Lyme Regis. Wendy Cope is an award-winning poet, noted for her excellent wit and harmonious relationship between poetry and real life, and has been writing for 25
A renowned London amateur chamber choir will be visiting Whitchurch Canonicorum on Saturday. The Concordia choir will be practising in the church of St Candida and Holy Cross during the day and will also be giving a free concert in the evening
Bridport Christmas Cheer is holding a fundraising bingo night at Bridport Town Hall tomrrow at 7.30pm. This is the first fundraiser the Bridport Cheer committee have organised and the aim is to make the Christmas Cheer event on 3 December even bigger
The New Schools Network has published one of the largest polls on how parents view their local school. It explores what parents value in a good school and asking how their own school measures up. The results showed that more than a one in four
Dorset HealthCare has expanded its Community Adult Asperger Service to benefit people in West Dorset who have Asperger’s Syndrome or autism. The expansion will mean that individuals living in West Dorset will now be able to take advantage of the
The clothes shop Smith & Smith is once again fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support at their West Street shop on Friday, September 26. There will be lots of coffee, cake and chat from 10am, and a grand draw, which includes a tweed jacket,
Macmillan Cancer Support is asking as many people as possible to get involved with this year’s ‘World’s Biggest Coffee Morning’ on Friday, September 26. Last year 154,000 people signed up to the coffee morning, raising a record £20m for Macmillan
Police dog Tango is calling it a day after an eight-and-a-half year career sniffing out crime. Dorset Police are saying goodbye to the popular German Shepherd that joined the force in 2006 at just eight weeks old and became an instant hit with
BRIDPORT: Councillor Dave Rick-ard has been elected chairman of Bridport Town Council’s environment and social wellbeing committee with Cllr Anne-Marie Vincent as his deputy.
BRIDPORT: The town council wants to look at getting maps being used for satellite navigation licensed. It also wants to be able to provide local help on energy use for small and medium sized businesses with less than 200 employees. These ideas
BRIDPORT: The Superfast Dorset project has been given strong support by officials from the county and district councils. The project will see improved internet speeds across the county and will be aided by a series of presentations and classes
WEST DORSET: Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance will be flying into locations across the two counties as part of an awareness campaign during National Air Ambulance Week. National Air Ambulance Week takes from Monday to September 28. The Dorset
Come and be creative with stained glass at two workshops held in the town on September 25. The workshops will be held at the Town Mill community room from 10am to 1pm. Learn to cut glass, copper foil and solder to make a small 2D or 3D boat
A smugglers tour will take place in the town on September 22. Those interested can hear what life was like as a smuggler in the town and across Dorset. The walk will last approximately one and a half hours and will run from 6pm. Anyone wishing
A determined 13-year-old girl will lose most of her hair to fashion into a wig for a cancer charity. Sir John Colfox school student Ella-May Cauldwell, who lives in Bridport with mum Hannah Lee, decided to cut more than seven inches off her hair
Dorset residents will be able to get a behind the scenes look at the inner workings of Dorset County Hospital next month when it throws open its doors for its annual public open day. The event will take place on Saturday, October 4, from 2pm to
The Kitson and Trotman offices in Bridport, Lyme, and Beaminster, and Milford and Dormer in Axminster, will all lend their support to Will Aid, in trying to reduce the number of people who have no existing will. Participating solicitors, instead
A new series of family history classes is planned at Marsh Barn for this autumn. There are two day courses – getting back to 1837 for beginners on Sunday, September 28 and Sunday, October 26. The courses will look at birth, marriage and death
WEST DORSET: Dorset Wildlife Trust is holding a free open day at Lorton Meadows on Saturday, September 20 between 10am and 4pm. Details on 01305 816546.
Allington Hill Volunteer Group has been shortlisted for the Lloyds Bank Community Fund 2014. The group now has the chance to be awarded a grant of up to £3,000 to help continue its work in the development of facilities around Cooper’s Wood and
WEST DORSET: Dorset Fire and Rescue Service launches a new road safety initiative called The Honest Truth at its Poundbury headquarters on Tuesday. Dorset RoadSafe, councillors and driving instructors have been invited to attend to try out the
WEST DORSET: A plan has been launched to improve the skills of people in West Dorset. The Workforce Skills Plan 2014-2017 has been drawn-up by Weymouth and Portland Borough Council and West Dorset District Council to help boost economic prosperity
BRIDPORT: The Allsop Gallery in the town’s arts centre is looking for volunteers to take up stewarding roles. Hosting a wide range and variety of exhibitions, such as knitted gardens, sculptures, and everyone inbetween, the gallery garners huge
BRIDPORT: Dorset Healthcare’s Greenfields Day Centre benefited from a £150 donation, thanks to two Bridport community groups. The Inner Wheel of Bridport Club and Harbour House Care Home in West Bay raised £150 for the Greenfields team and Day
BRIDPORT: A 50-year-old woman who lost more than eight stone and went from a size 26 to a 12 has been competing for Woman of the Year in the Dorset and Somerset district finals of a slimming competition. Grocery market stallholder Sarah Boyd from
LYME REGIS: Award-winning comedian Susan Calman is embarking on her first ever UK tour and will hit Lyme Regis next month. The popular comedian, writer and actress will entertain the Marine Theatre in Lyme Regis on October 3 from 8pm. The evening
Dorset County Museum is hosting a talk by Dr Caroline Smith called Treasures from Space on October 8 at 7pm. Chance and a fascination for discovery brought her to the Natural History Museum and she now looks after the oldest specimens in its collection
THE Blackdown WI Flower and Produce Show was well supported with exhibitors coming from a wide area to take part. The floral art section especially had a lot of entries and as always the judges commented on the high standard of exhibits. The
On September 7 members and friends of the Bridport and District Model Railway Club visited the South Devon Railway which is based in Buckfastleigh and runs along the River Dart to Totnes. They departed from Bridport and Beaminster about 8.30am
Bridport Deaf Club recently received £1,723.85 in funding to allow the organisation to purchase ICT equipment. Officials said that many members who attended the club had never accessed the internet and would benefit from the donation, which was
The Lyme Regis ladies bowls team retained their place in division 1 of the Dorset League despite going down 0-10 away to Dorchester. Poole Park managed only six of the eight points which would have seen them stay up and Lyme relegated. The men’
This year’s autumn open boat match was fished in perfect conditions with light winds and a good tide. The fishing in Lyme Bay has been very poor all summer, so competitors were hoping for some better fish this time around. This competition
The arts centre will host a performance by musician Lisa Knapp as she embarks on a full-band UK tour. The performance on October 11 at the Arts Centre will take place right in the middle of her nationwide tour of the Hidden Seam album. With
DORSET man Chris Coe walked 375 miles along the south coast to raise nearly £5,500 for Brain Tumour Research. He walked from Land’s End to Poole Harbour and said it was some of the wildest and most severe coastline in the country, with long stretches
ST James Park Nursing Home had a successful dog show to raise funds for The Dogs Trust. Residents and visitors enjoyed watching a variety of breeds including a bassett hound, springer spaniel, chihuahua, Jack Russell and some adorable mongrels.
Turn Lyme Green member Simon West has a strong green pulse running through his life and his business. In 2011, he retrofitted all the halogen lights in his home and office and replaced them with a selection of LED and low energy bulbs. The
A local superstore will help schoolchildren learn about the story of food through a new initiative. Morrisons is launching the Academy of Food in Bridport, a free education programme designed to help children understand where good food comes from
Palmers’ Brewery Fund have donated more than £840 this year to Bridport Community Orchard to aid in the purchase of tools and vital material. John Palmer, chairman of Palmers Brewery, met community members recently to learn about current projects
LYME REGIS: Hayseed Dixie will bring back their own barn-storming-foot-stomping-banjo-playing style to the Marine Theatre for the first time since 2011. The band have sold over half a million albums worldwide and played more than 1,000 live shows
INVIGORWRITE!, the Lyme-based creative writing specialists, have developed a new creative writing workshop, A Flash in the Pan, for Lyme Arts Fest 2014. The event will take place at Hix Oyster & Fish House from 10am to midday on September 24
WEST DORSET: The free school meals policy has been a success for Dorset despite issues with one of the suppliers, the head of a local food company has said. Caroline Morgan, chief executive of West Dorset-based Local Food Links, spoke a week after
COUNTY: Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has been shortlisted in the Provider Trust of the Year and Rising Stars categories of the 2014 Health Service Journal Awards. The trust is in the running for the Provider Trust of the Year award
BEAMINSTER: An exhibition with a difference is now on show in the museum to commemorate 100 years since the outbreak of the First World War. Previous commemorations in West Dorset this year have included services of remembrance at Shipton Gorge
MARSHWOOD School has had problems with the introduction from the start of this term of a free hot lunch for all children in the UK aged between five and seven years, writes Marshwood correspondent Mark Van De Weyer. The headteacher, Helen Whitehead
COUNTY: Bus chief Marc Reddy has been nominated for a national industry award. The managing director of First in Hampshire, Dorset and Berkshire has been shortlisted for Manager of the Year, Large Operator. The event is being organised by Route
THANKS this week Robert Montague-Woolger for these pictures and information about his wife’s relations and their war records. Her great grandfather was JT Stephens, who was Mayor of Bridport more than once and senior partner in Hounsells. They
THE ‘Chideock in the Wars’ event was so well attended that we had to hastily put out more chairs for people to watch the power point presentation and the play The Chideock Egg Lady, writes Chideock correspondent Lyn Crisp. Many thanks must go to
The Bridport Chamber of Commerce is to launch a new monthly networking programme to help the business community in the local area. Over the course of the programme a number of well-known local businesses will be speaking about examples of best
ON Tuesday of last week many people were looking out to sea watching the Tall Ship Belem, a French registered craft, under sail, writes West Bay correspondent Philip Ringer. The vessel dropped anchor just outside the harbour entrance overnight.
BRIDPORT: A new Bridport-based company is hoping to catch a run on the rest of the world by offering a unique online safety deposit box for people to store sensitive or precious files. Virtual Legacy aims to not only help with the storage of such
Dorset Wildlife Trust is pleased to be putting on an event celebrating the wildlife around Wimborne – which includes kingsfishers and otters. The event, Wild About Wimborne, is taking place at Minster Green, Wimborne on Saturday from 10.30am to
People are being given the chance to have their say on proposed gypsy and traveller sites in the county. A consultation on the possible locations, including one in West Dorset, begin this week. The sites include the Old Chapel Yard at Marshwood
Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall and author Erin Kelly will be holding a signing session at Waterstone’s in Bridport on Saturday. Erin Kelly is the author who adapted the smash-hit ITV crime drama, which was set and filmed in West Bay, into a
Dorset Fire and Rescue Service has thanked the community for their quick thinking in reporting a blaze in Langmoor Gardens. The fire occurred last Thursday, September 11, at approximately 8pm. One fire crew from Lyme Regis was called out to deal
The Western Area Transport Action Group’s next meeting is next Thursday, September 25 at 6.30pm in the WI Hall in North Street, Bridport. On the agenda will be the X31 X53 evening reductions and people will have a chance to have their say on the changes
WEST DORSET: Next week you can try something completely different at a special event from September 27 to October 4. The ‘Try This…’ event is made up of 42 one or two-hour sessions running for six days. These will take place in a number of different
BRIDPORT: Members of the town council’s environment and social wellbeing committee are concerned at the proposed reduction in the number of waste bins and possible reduction in the frequency of emptying them. They are also questioning the proposal
BRIDPORT: Past, present, and future volunteers of the Bridport division of St John Ambulance gathered to thank their outgoing leader for his 31 years of service. Retiring from the Bridport division earlier this year, Tony Nott led the division
COUNTY: On-call firefighters in Dorset are looking for new recruits to join the crew. Over the next month fire crews are holding informal recruitment evenings and all day sessions for those interested in becoming an on-call firefighter. Recruitment
BURTON BRADSTOCK: ‘A Feast of Folk’ is looking to raise money for the RNLI by tapping into the old village tradition of music, song, and dance. The event will run from noon to 6pm in the garden of The Three Horseshoes Pub on September 20. The
BRIDPORT: Homes across the town could be affected by a potential invasion of bedbugs, pest control experts are warning. Experts are predicting a dramatic rise in the number of infestations after witnessing similar problems during the same time
Coastguards were alerted when a man’s motorised wheelchair became stuck in sand on Hive Beach on Sunday afternoon. The 63-year-old man and his scooter were taken to firm ground.
A doctor of philosophy from Whitchurch Canonicorum has been acquitted of an alleged fraud offence. Anthony Stephen Farmer, aged 66, had entered a not guilty plea to dishonestly failing to disclose information to the Department for Work and Pensions
People are set to turn out in force to a public meeting discussing changes to waiting restrictions in the town after uproar from businesses and traders. Various changes to waiting restrictions were proposed by Dorset County Council’s Highways Department
BridportFM radio station has been a success on the airwaves, organisers say. The service has been running since Monday and daily shows can be heard from 9am to 9pm on 87.7FM or online until Sunday. And the fun doesn’t stop there with a live
WEST DORSET: Butterflies, ear trumpets and a giant white hare will put the South Dorset Ridgeway in a whole new light this weekend. Ridgeway Responses is a free, family-friendly arts event centred around Littlebredy from tomorrow until Sunday.
A WOMAN died after falling down a flight of stairs at her Bridport home, an inquest was told. Rozanne Chappuis, 63, was at home with husband Kevin when the fatal fall occurred at around 3.20pm on March 3. Mr Chappuis said the couple had been
Another sexual abuse victim has spoken out following the ordeal suffered by the 10th Earl of Sandwich’s son Robert Montagu. The woman, now in her 50s, was so traumatised by being raped by a succession of Asian men more than 30 years ago that she
LYME REGIS: Vandals have destroyed the town’s Christmas lights which have cost organisers around £2,000 to replace, it is claimed. Virgil Turner from the Lyme Christmas Lights Committee said that hundreds of bulbs kept in a locked storage unit
FORMER bass player From The Jam Bruce Foxton is performing the band’s classic album Setting Sons at the Bridport Electric Palace on September 19 with From the Jam. In conversation with Joanna Davis, Bruce reveals that life truly is on the up. IT
BRIDPORT: Heartfelt tributes have been paid following the death of a ‘friendly and inspirational’ woman who was also one of West Dorset’s oldest residents. Kathleen Rosher, 103, passed away on Saturday, September 6 at the Harbour House care home
A vicar who died at sea on the return leg of a pilgrimage had told his wife he was prepared to ‘die in the attempt’. Burton Bradstock vicar Robert Anthony Thorn, known as Bob, was on his way from a trip to Cornwall in his rowing boat when tragedy
COMEDY actress Meera Syal will star in the second series of Broadchurch, it has been announced. The television actress, who starred in BBC comedy The Kumars at No. 42, was confirmed as a cast member for Broadchurch 2 by ITV this morning. A
LYME REGIS 2 CHAGFORD 1 GOALS from Dominic Rowe and Jack Durrant ensured Lyme maintained their unbeaten start to the season in Devon & Exeter League Division Three. The duo struck in the first half of last weekend’s encounter at Davey Fort
