For September 2009 click here

IMPORTANT NOTICE We regret that the trustees of Trilith have decided to bring the curtain down on Farm Radio. However, the team are determined to provide our listeners with an alternative service as promptly as possible. Please, please come back to check for links from this site from time to time and, hopefully, before too long we will surprise you with something new and exciting! It has been agreed that this site will remain accessible on the internet for posterity and will stand as a tribute to all of the hard work, professional and voluntary, that has gone into it and as a mark of our gratitude to all of those who freely gave their time and support to enable us to bring you these stories of a rapidly changing community and way of life.   Thanks for sticking with us through the last bumpy few months and best wishes to all of you from all of us. In the meantime, we have posted the first of three parts of the video record of the last day at Sturminster Newton Livestock Market which we had planned to post on this edition but now seems rather apt. The Farm Radio team.

Would you like to work with Farm Radio? Are you considering an oral history or media based project for your community?  The Farm Radio team has many years experience of all aspects of community media work, audio and video production and has a long record of involvement in such projects so, if we can help in any way, contact us.

Heart of the Vale, Soul of the Town, Part 13, The Last Day, Part 1 of 3     It is now more than ten years since the livestock market at Sturminster Newton closed down, bringing to an end 700 years of tradition.  We were involved in a project gathering views and ideas on video from the users of the market as part of the effort to keep it open.  The realisation of what the closure meant to the people who used it was part of the inspiration behind the concept of "Farm Radio".  So, therefore, it seems fitting to post some of the footage that we shot here.   I was thinking of calling this section "Where Are They Now?" but, given the age of some of the contributors and the passing of time, the answer to that would be all too obvious in so many cases.  However, it would be great to hear from our listeners with any stories of the subsequent adventures of the folk featured here so we could follow up their stories.  Perhaps we should call it "What Happened Next?"  Video shot and edited by John Holman. Click on the bale to view (14/10/09) Click for Part 1, Pat and Ted, Part 2, Ian and Paul, Part 3, The Auctioneers, Part 4, Ernie, Part 5, Clar, Part 6, Jenny and the Pigs, Part 7, The Drovers, Part 8, Stan Harris, Part 9, Len and Cecil, Part 10, The Trader and Butch, Part 11, Norman Tite the Haulier, Part 12, Denis Wareham the Rep.

 

FARM RADIO IS AT THE CROSSROADS! If you enjoy your visits to this site or if your enterprise has been featured here with positive effects, please could you take a moment to tell us.  We need to be able to demonstrate your support in order to attract the resources to take Farm Radio on to the next stages of development.  Statistics are one thing but nothing is as good as personal testimonials. Do you think that you may have something to contribute to the future of the site?  We are planning to start up a steering group that will have a rôle in the development of this site and would welcome expressions of interest in this from our visitors. e-mail

ANNOUNCEMENTS from the Royal Bath and West of England Society   The show is held at The Bath and West Showground, near Shepton Mallet, and gates open on the 7th October at 8.30am. Tickets can be bought in advance for £10.00 which is £2 cheaper than the pay on the day price. Details can be found on www.bathandwest.com or contact 01749 822200. ----------------------------------------- Securing the Rural Future: Land Use Priorities The Society is excited to be running a joint seminar with the Royal Geographical Society with IBG with the aim of examining some of the problems and solutions relating to planning for future sustainable land use in rural areas. Using the West Country as a model, eminent speakers will cover such topics as climate change, population increase, pollution concerns, security of food, energy and economy, biodiversity and scientific developments. Chairman - John Palmer, 4th Earl of Selborne The speakers’ topics will be as follows: Conservation in a Hungry World     Professor Ian Mercer Implications of Climate Change                          Sir Brian Hoskins Security of Food and Energy                                Dr Richard Cresswell    Economic Consequences of Limited Resources        Lord Ewen Cameron Click here to book or for more details ---------------------------- ART SCHOLARSHIP Are you a practising young artist between the ages of 22 and 30 years old who prefers painting Landscapes or Rural Life in the UK? You can win a Scholarship worth £3,000 to help further your career and to have your own exhibition in our gallery at the Royal Bath & West Show with the opportunity to sell your paintings. A second award of £250 is also available. Application forms and further information available from Alison Ward, The Royal Bath & West of England Society, The Showground, Shepton Mallet, Somerset BA4 6QN. 01749 822243 or e-mail Alison Ward Click here for more details ENTRIES CLOSE 15th JANUARY 2010

ANNOUNCEMENT WEDMORE YOUNG FARMERS Welly Week Disco Saturday 17th October 2009    Fundraiser for R.A.B.I (Supporting Farming Families)   DRESS CODE = WELLIES 8pm – Late Lower Splott Farm, Mark, TA9 4NR (Opposite Somerlap) £5 Entry if you’re wearing wellies, £7 If you don’t wear wellies   ID required James Hector (Chairman) - 07772566169

"Cows Can Talk" - a new book by Julie Andrews Farm Radio received a message about a new book written by farmer Julie Andrews, putting into words the thoughts and reflections of the cows on her farm.  Intrigued, John Holman of Farm Radio went to Burtle, near Bridgwater, to find out more . . . "Granny Cow" - Esme Sandiford (Julie's mother) "Josephine"    - Claire Willcox (Julie's niece) To buy a copy of "Cows Can Talk" visit the website, www.cowscantalk.co.uk There are two interviews with Claire Willcox on this site.  August 2009 and on "Future Farming Voices"  (the "junior" department of Farm Radio) Click on the bale to listen (11/09/09)

ANNOUNCEMENT         The Organic Food Festival Website for more info.

David Aplin of the Kingcombe Centre David Aplin has returned to his Dorset roots to take over the directorship of the countryside and environmental studies charity the Kingcombe Centre.  Margery Hookings talked to him about the interesting route his career has taken and which has led him back to Dorset. For more about the background of the Kingcombe Centre, click here for Margery Hookings' interview from last year with Martin Biss, one of the Centre's trustees.   David will be giving a charity talk about his botanical expeditions around the world in aid of the Kingcombe Centre called: ‘In search of the ugliest plant in the world, encounters with Guatemalan bandits, and other adventures’, at the Litton Cheney Community Hall (LATCH) at 7.30pm on Wednesday 16th September, admission £5 including a glass of wine. www.kingcombecentre.org.uk Click on the bale to listen (07/09/09)

Would you like to see the name of your enterprise/business/organisation here . . . ? Contact us to find out what we can offer.

ANNOUNCEMENT Are you passionate about making a positive change in society? Do you deserve recognition for your work? Do you know someone else who does? If yes, then you could be nominated for a Social Change Award! The Social Change Awards are for all those working to achieve a positive change in society - individuals, charities, community groups, companies, public bodies. You don't have to be a charity to apply... whether you're applying as an individual, an informal group, a company, a public body OR a charity, if you're passionate about social change then there's a category for you. The nomination process is simple, visit Social Change Awards Online, download and complete the nomination form and submit it. You can nominate yourself (or your own organisation) or recommend others for nomination.  For more information about the awards and the nomination process, click here. This year's awards are proudly sponsored by Charity Bank. Charity Bank is a bank and a charity. It uses its depositors' funds solely to provide loan finance and support to charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises. For further information visit www.charitybank.org or email enquiries@charitybank.org

The Wessex Ridgeway Trail, Part 5, Beaminster to Lyme Regis The Wessex Ridgeway Trail stretches 62 miles from Ashmore on the Dorset/Wiltshire Border in the east to Lyme Regis in the west.  To mark the opening of this route for walkers, riders and cyclists which is the culmination of much hard work by Demelza Hyde and her colleagues from Dorset Countryside (the countryside service of Dorset County Council), Farm Radio team members created an audio journey along its length, meeting the people who live and work there and celebrating the scenery, flora and fauna, history, archaeology and culture of the area. This is the fifth and final part starting in deep Dorset countryside near Beaminster and finishing up at the sea with an insight into collecting fossils, via Lyme's impressively researched and restored Town Mill. Click for Part 1, Ashmore to Shillingstone, Part 2, Shillingstone to Dorset Gap, Part 3, Dorset Gap to Maiden Newton, Part 4, Maiden Newton to Beaminster To find out more about this trail, click here Click on the bale to listen (02/09/09)

Would you like to work with Farm Radio? Are you considering an oral history or media based project for your community?  The Farm Radio team has many years experience of all aspects of community media work, audio and video production and has a long record of involvement in such projects so, if we can help in any way, contact us.   Also, we are always keen to find new volunteers to train and support as correspondents for Farm Radio.

Heart of the Vale, Soul of the Town, Part 12, Denis Wareham the Rep. It is now more than ten years since the livestock market at Sturminster Newton closed down, bringing to an end 700 years of tradition.  We were involved in a project gathering views and ideas on video from the users of the market as part of the effort to keep it open.  The realisation of what the closure meant to the people who used it was part of the inspiration behind the concept of "Farm Radio".  So, therefore, it seems fitting to post some of the footage that we shot here. I was thinking of calling this section "Where Are They Now?" but, given the age of some of the contributors and the passing of time, the answer to that would be all too obvious in so many cases.  However, it would be great to hear from our listeners with any stories of the subsequent adventures of the folk featured here so we could follow up their stories.  Perhaps we should call it "What Happened Next?"  Video shot and edited by John Holman. Click on the bale to view (03/09/09) Click for Part 1, Pat and Ted, Part 2, Ian and Paul, Part 3, The Auctioneers, Part 4, Ernie, Part 5, Clar, Part 6, Jenny and the Pigs, Part 7, The Drovers, Part 8, Stan Harris, Part 9, Len and Cecil, Part 10, The Trader and Butch, Part 11, Norman Tite the Haulier