As ever, we are at the Three Magnets, Leys Avenue, Letchworth. Thursday nights are curry nights but other food (standard Wetherspoons' fare) is available as well. Leys Avenue is the main shopping street in Letchworth and is a few minutes' walk from the station (Kings Cross to Cambridge line). Call me for more details and encouragement.
Our first event in September is T@3 on Saturday 3rd in the restaurant at Dobbie's Garden Centre in Fenny Stratford. We'll be there from 3pm, probably in the conservatory area at the back.
On Saturday 3rd Gregory Monks invites you to visit Wingfield Manor near Alfreton (DE55 7NH) built in the 1440s. Gregory lives in the North East region but is a guide at the manor. Access is by pre-booked guided tours that only happen three times a month during the summer. If you'd like to take part please phone English Heritage on 0370 333 1181 and ask for the 3.30pm tour. Tours are free for English Heritage members otherwise £6.90 adults, £6.20 students and over 60s, £4.10 children or £17.90 for a family ticket. The tour lasts 90 minutes but please note that owing to the very uneven nature of the site and the distances covered the tours are not suitable for people with limited mobility. Further details are available from Gregory on [Phone Number]. Book soon as places limited!
Join us for fun gathering answers on your way around one of two routes (one less strenuous). Prizes for both. Suitable for accompanied children. Start: Tennyson's statue in the Cathedral grounds. Contact Jacquie on [Phone Number] or [Email] by 3rd for more details or just turn-up with a pen.
We're at the Vat & Fiddle in the city centre from 8.00pm on Monday 5th.
Then at the Cadland in Chilwell from 7.30pm on Thursday 8th.
Meet me from 10:30am onwards on Friday 9th September for a morning of informal conversation and coffee. This month we are returning to The Cape on Station Road in Beaconsfield, HP9 1NN. Further details at http://thecapeonline.com. If you can, please let me know in advance that you are coming so I can choose a suitable table. You will still be welcome if you just turn up on the day.
Meet in the alcove of the 'Adam and Eve' on Lindum Hill. Look for magazine. Discussion around "Are some places more spiritual than others?" starts around 12.30pm. Free parking and food available. Contact Jacquie on [Phone Number] or [Email] if queries.
On Saturday 10th Gerard Heaney will be visiting from Ireland and would like to invite local members to join him for dinner and drinks at Ye Olde Dolphin on the corner of Queens Street and Full Street in the city centre at 7:00pm. He will hopefully be celebrating a Derby County win that afternoon. If you want to know why an Irishman is supporting a football team in the East Midlands, why not go along and find out! If you'd like to join Ger for dinner please let him know on [Phone Number] or [Email] so that a table can be reserved upstairs. You are welcome to come along later for just a drink in the bar too.
Sunday breakfast will be on 11th at 10am at Carluccio's in the Centre:MK. You will probably find us in one of the red booths just in front of the restaurant. Come for a full breakfast, a snack, or just a drink.
On Friday 16th I'm organising a supper and quiz night. Venue is Greasley Parish Hall in Newthorpe (NG16 3QN). Doors open at 7.30pm and a supper of baked potatoes with various toppings and salad plus gateaux and cream will be served. The hall does not have a bar and is not licensed so bring your own drinks please. Glasses will be provided. This will be followed by a general knowledge quiz. Play in teams of up to four people. Prize for the winners. Tickets for this fun night out are only £7 with proceeds going to Cancer Research UK. The event will end at 10.00pm. Please contact me to purchase and feel free to invite family and friends.
As there will be some members from further afield attending the quiz night I've organised a couple of events for Saturday 17th too. Join us for brunch at The Lady Chatterley (Wetherspoons) in Eastwood from 11.30am. Contact me if you need directions. There will then be the opportunity to visit the D H Lawrence Birthplace Museum. This includes a guided tour, an exhibition and a film show where you can learn about the people and places that were the inspiration for his novels. The cost is £6.90 adults, £5.10 concessions or £3.50 children. Note that tours operate on a pre-booked basis only and I'm aiming to book the one at 1.15pm. Please let me know if you would like one of the limited places. Ciao for now!
IN STEAM at the annual Bedfordshire Steam and Country Fayre. An event for everyone but especially if you like old mechanical things doing! I will be there from 11 am for the day and hope to see you there! The location is Old Warden Park, Beds SG18 9DX or I can pick people up from Biggleswade or Letchworth stations. Contact me on [Phone Number] for details and encouragement.
Do come and join us at the Rendezvous Coffee Shop in Market Walk, Northampton Town Centre at 10:30am on Sunday 18 September for a drink, breakfast or full brunch. Remember you can always bring a partner, friend, granny or pet hamster with you. Contact Marianne on [Phone Number] or email: [Email] if you need yet more encouragement!
Our monthly visit to the Barge in Woolstone for the quiz is on Monday 19th. Meet from 8:30 - the quiz starts at 9pm and costs £1 per person. Please let me know beforehand if you're coming so I can bag a large enough table.
Enthusiastic games players Dave and Alison invite you to their home in Flackwell Heath for an evening of indoor games - possibilities available include Boggle, Enigma, Sherlock Holmes, Mid-Life Crisis and many others. Arrive for an 8pm start on Monday 19th September. Space is limited, so please contact Dave on [Email] or [Phone Number] for directions and to let him know which games you would like to play.
As usual our "3rd Wednesday" will be a get together at the Standing Order on Irongate and this month falls on 21st. Find us on a long table in the rear section of this Wetherspoon pub any time from 7:30pm until late for good value food and/or drink. There will be a yellow Mblem on the table.
On Sunday 25th September, join me for a visit to Waddesdon Manor, a magnificent country house built in the style of a 16th-century French château. Explore the house, gardens, fine art collection, aviary and woodland play area. House entry is by timed ticket. I have booked for 12:30. Free to NT members, other prices from £9. Either meet up on the free bus which leaves Aylesbury Vale Parkway station just after 11am or at the Welcome Pavilion at 11:30. Please book your tickets on-line at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/waddesdon-manor or by phone on 01296 653226.
Finally our eating meeting at 7:30pm on Tuesday 27th will be at The Bubble Inn in Stenson (DE73 7HL) where their menu has a Greek flavour. See www.thebubbleinnhotel.com. Please reserve your place with me by 23rd latest. New faces always welcome!
Usually a popular choice, join us at The Pyewipe near A57/A46 junction for good food and lively conversation. Please contact Jacquie so that she can book a table by Monday 26th.
Last Friday is at our usual venue of the Cowper Arms, Digswell. The pub is next to Welwyn North station and is served by stopping trains from Kings Cross to Peterborough and Cambridge. Good food, beer and conversation guaranteed! Please call me on [Phone Number] for more details and encouragement.