Speaker Secretary Ian Rutter reports:

Our speaker in September is our old friend, Andy Thomas, who is returning to give us his fifth presentation in as many years.

For nearly 30 years, Andy has been investigating many enduring enigmas, including Crop Circles, (remember that talk?), UFO’s and other para-normal subjects, as well as a multitude of classic conspiracy theories. He always manages to find that tantalising middle ground to promote an animated discussion at the end of his presentation.

Andy also speaks passionately about freedom and liberty issues, as well as history, and it is into this last category that his presentation to us next month will fall.  Spectacularly illustrated, Andy explores his Sussex birthplace of historical Lewes, renowned for its huge Bonfire Night celebrations, reputedly the largest in the world.

It sounds like another Andy Thomas talk, which is not to be missed!

Speaker Secretary Ian Rutter reports:

Our speaker for August was Professor Julian Evans, a forest scientist and Past President of the Institute of Chartered Foresters.

In 1985, partly for research and partly as a hobby, Julian and his brother-in-law bought a 30-acre neglected woodland from the Forestry Commission. It is situated just south-west of Basingstoke, next to a railway line, on what was once part of the Steventon Estate, owned by the family of Jane Austen.

Over the years since the purchase, Julian, assisted by his family and friends, have restored the site back to the working woodland, which it used to be. However, warned Julian, if you are tempted to buy a small wood of your own, you will not get rich on the income which it generates!

He recounted the story of the purchase, the replanting and the various encounters with the local people and fauna, including a guide to the  disposal of troublesome grey squirrels. The whole presentation was laced with anecdotes and featured much natural history, all delivered in Julian’s infectious, enthusiastic style.

Probus ’83 Club member, David Drake, gave the well-deserved vote of thanks.

Speaker Secretary Ian Rutter reports;

Our speaker in August is Professor Julian Evans, a forest scientist.

Julian chairs the Forestry Commission’s Expert Committee on Forest Science and is a Past-President of the Institute of Chartered Foresters. After graduating in Forestry at Bangor University, he went on to become  Professor of Forestry at Imperial College, London.  Julian has also been the Chief Research Officer for the Forestry Commission at Alice Holt.  He is the author or principal editor of 16 books.

Julian has a long-term research interest in plantation sustainability in Swaziland, (for which he was awarded an O.B.E.), and the silviculture of broad-leaved woodland in the U.K.

He and his wife, Margaret, are owners themselves of a 12 hectare woodland site in Hampshire, which is the subject of his presentation to us ‘A Wood of our Own’.

Sounds a bit of a dry subject ? Think again! We know from past experience that when a presenter is an expert in his subject and is enthusiastic about it, the talk will be good. 

Speaker Secretary Ian Rutter reports:

Our speaker for July was club member and past-Chairman Neville Lyons.

His illustrated talk entitled ‘British War Artists of the Second World War’ was in complete contrast to his two previous presentations to the Club – the ‘Joe Lyons Corner Houses’ saga and the story of ‘Leo the First Business Computer’.

Many of his audience this time were surprised to learn about such a large output of work from some very well-known artists, (such as Eric Ravilious, Laura Knight, Terence Cuneo and Stanley Spencer), and some less well- known.

Neville explained the establishment of the War Artists Advisory Committee, under Sir Kenneth Clark, and its work in organising the activities of the many artists, who recorded the war on the Home Front and Overseas, on land, sea and in the air.  All of this was accompanied by wonderful images capturing the relevant mood projected by each piece of artwork.

Club member, Ian Mackrell, gave a well-deserved vote of thanks to Neville for his carefully researched presentation and confessed that, like many present, he was unaware of the sheer size and scope of this very interesting subject.

Farnham Probus hosted the annual golf match against Probus ‘83 at
Clandon Regis Golf Club on 28 June 2019. Unlike last year’s match,
which coincided with the tail end of “Storm Hector” and recently
tined greens, this year we had delightful summer conditions, with a
pleasant cooling breeze and a course in excellent condition.
Due to a mixture of holidays, injury and hospitalisation, we could only
muster five players, which was just as well as Farnham managed to
raise six, including a lady who was the widow of a former Farnham
Probus member.

We played the match on an individual Stableford basis, with eventually
five players on each side, after the lady retired early due to injury.
(Not as one wag suggested, because of the chauvinistic company!)
As usual, the match was played in a competitive spirit – but our
Captain thought we had taken things a bit too far when the Farnham
Captain was hit on the back of the leg by a ball struck from the tee on
the Par 3 second hole – thankfully, the culprit was one of his own
players!

The Probus ‘83 team comprised Peter Brown, Ian Rutter, David Mayne,
John North and John Coleman (Captain).

Largely thanks to the sterling performance of John North (Overall
Winner of the Stableford competition) and Peter Brown (Stableford
Runner-up), Probus ‘83 were the overall winners of the team prize,
which was donated by the Farnham Captain, Ian Myers. (To be called
the “FAG’83 Cup” !)

Unfortunately, no one managed to get on the green on the sixth hole
to win the “Nearest the Pin” prize – so by mutual consent, the prize
for “Nearest the Green” was presented to a member of the Farnham
team. The prize for the “Longest Drive” on the 15th hole was won by
John North.

This was the last match of the season, so the Probus ’83 Golf Team
will now get into serious training for the next match in Spring 2020!

Our speaker in July is Club Member and Past Chairman, Neville Lyons, who will be giving his third talk to the Club. His presentation is entitled ‘British War Artists of the Second World War’.

Neville’s military background, coupled with his long-term interest in 20th Century Art encouraged him to make wide research on this subject.

The early days of the Second World War saw the setting up of the War Artists Advisory Committee by the historian, Sir Kenneth Clark, with responsibility for selecting and organising the activities of the many artists who were to undertake the recording of the war from 1939 to 1945.

Neville will be dipping into the coverage of the war by a wide selection of the well-known War Artists, employed on the Home Front and Overseas theatres, as well as at sea and in the air. There will be copious illustrations of their work, accompanied by information about the artists and the organisation of the whole project.

Speaker Secretary Ian Rutter reports:

Our speaker this month was Vic Quayle. 

When asked for a brief CV before the meeting, Vic provided a few enigmatic notes, which included, inter alia; ‘Won a Gold Medal in Rio’, ‘Broken a World Record’ and ‘Been attacked by a Cheetah and a Gorilla’.

However, his presentation to us was a little more prosaic, as his talk was entitled ‘Three Legs and No Tail by a Manxman’, and was an account of the history, the people and the engineering of the Isle of Man, his birthplace.

The island is self-governing and its legislature, the Tynwald, is the oldest continuous parliament in the world, having been established in 979 AD, (or thereabouts – the actual date is not known). On July 5th, Tynwald Day is ‘celebrated’ on the Isle of Man, being the day when all laws passed by the Tynwald during the previous 12 months are read to the population, so that no-one can claim ignorance of the law as a defence.

I have quite a few IOM stamps with Manx cats on them, but I was surprised when Vic told us that they were quite rare, (the cats, not the stamps!). Similarly, it was sad to learn of the plight of several of the little railways on the island.

Club member, David Mayne, gave the vote of thanks, expressing the members’ general appreciation of Vic’s talk. With a diverse range of talks in his portfolio, (and living in Guildford), we might well be seeing Vic again in the next year or two.

The gold medal in Rio? No, not the Olympics – a South American car rally. The world record? Another car rally, this time from Southern Spain to Northern Norway.  The animals were in a private zoo in Weybridge, which Vic was inspecting in his role of Environmental Health Officer.

Cranleigh have invited Probus ’83 members to join with them for this trip. Time is short – last booking date is Friday 24th May – so please book directly with Derek Bonham. His contact details are on Mike Sinclair’s email: 19th May, 1206. If you’ve lost that then Mike will help.

Full trip details are:

Wednesday 5 June 2019 (trip 2019/5) – Exbury Gardens near Beaulieu, Hampshire.

The inspiration of Lionel Nathan de Rothschild to create one of the finest woodland gardens in the country. It is described as “a garden for people young and old, horticulturalist or enthusiastic gardener or just a lover of beautiful places” and is sited near the Beaulieu river. There are 20 miles of pathways, 3 woods, riverside walks and abundant parkland to explore plus a ride on a steam train for 20 minutes after which we can visit the roomy Engine Shed with graphics, videos and memorabilia that line the walls recalling steam’s heyday and the construction of the railway.

The plan for the day can be anticipated as follows:-

10.30am – arrive for coffee/tea (included)

11am – garden tour for about 2 hours with the Head Gardener

1pm – lunch at Mr Eddy’s Tea Rooms. There are 2 options here, we can either have a set meal of 2 or 3 courses for around £15 or £20 p.p. respectively all together or use the café/restaurant individually for a snack without a specified area being put aside for us. Mr Eddy update – menus for all 2019 food purchases will not now be available until April! When booking please produce your cheque excluding lunch and indicate whether you are interested in the set meal which can then be invoiced separately.

2pm or 3pm – train ride – our choice on the day. Thereafter free time.

4.30pm – leave for home.

Leaving Cranleigh at 8.15am and returning back to Cranleigh at around 6.30pm. Cost £40 p.p. excluding lunch assuming at least 30 participants. Arrangement Probus B. Cheques please with bookings to Derek Bonham in favour of Cranleigh & District Probus B Club. Last date for bookings 24 May 2019. Your cheques will be banked on 28 May 2019.

Our Speaker in June will be Vic Quayle.

Vic was born on the Isle of Man and now resides in Guildford. He is well-known on the Probus, Rotary, W.I. and similar speaking circuits, with a portfolio of more than twelve talks.

He started his working career as an Environmental Health Officer and has a fund of stories about life ranging from dirty restaurants and blocked drains to venomous snakes and gorillas. He has put these all together to form the basis of his talk, appropriately called ‘A Life of Grime’.

In his spare time, Vic is a bit of a petrolhead, with a particular passion for car rallying, which has taken him all over the world and provided source material for more presentations.

The many railway enthusiasts among us might be interested to know that Vic also has a fully illustrated talk about the origins of the Ghan Railway in Australia.

However, for his talk to us, Vic will be going back to his roots with a presentation entitled ‘Three Legs and No Tail by a Manxman’.  The ‘Three Legs’ refer, of course, to the national Coat of Arms of the Isle of Man – the Triskelion – the three legs covered in armour, each with gold spurs. The motto accompanying it, ‘Quocunque Jeceris Stabit’, means ‘Whichever Way You Throw It, It Will Stand’.  ‘No Tail’, of course, relates to the tailless Manx Cats. 

No doubt, Vic will mention these amongst many other interesting facts in his presentation, when he talks about the island, its history and its people.