Articles

Kibworth resident Shellie Barron writes, I am taking part in a sponsored walk called TREK26 to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society in memory of my nan, Olive, after losing her last year to dementia. This is going to take place on Saturday 1 June in the Lake District as this was my nan’s favourite place to visit. The walk around Ullswater will consist of 26.1 miles with an elevation gain of 3,172 ft. Anyone who knows me knows I am not one to walk so this will definitely be a challenge!

(not the former British jazz group called Field of Blue!)
Flax is now becoming more common in the fields around Kibworth, taking the place of the heady smell of Oilseed Rape. Is Linseed oil and seed the new cash crop? Perhaps our farming readers can advise on this please.

Stacey and Steven Briggs, owners of Windmill Farm Park, Kibworth Harcourt, LE8 0PR have, through innovative use of in vitro fertilisation (IVF), introduced the Nigerian Dwarf Goat breed into the UK.
Known as the world’s smallest Dairy Breed, the new Nigerian Dwarf Kid was born at Windmill Farm Park on 14 March. At just 22 cm tall, he is expected to grow no more than 60 cm, a third smaller than his standard UK dairy goat cousins. Extremely cute, he is already a firm favourite by the livestock team at the Farm.

Gumley Hall, demolished in 1962, employed many people during its heyday. The Hall used to stand to the east of the church with a lake behind, which is still there but is private property. There was no electricity in the village until 1931, but the owners of Gumley Hall made good this deficiency by generating their own supplies. In the small factory-like building with a large chimney-stack south of the church, Captain Whitmore produced gas in the late-19th century, and Mr Murray Smith in the early 20th century converted the installation to produce electricity.

So said Troilus to Pandarus in Shakespeare’s ‘Troilus and Cressida’ (Act Five, Scene Three). A sentiment shared by the philosopher Alan Watts who called words ‘puffs of air’. On the other hand, the America Christian preacher Charles Capps has said that words are the most powerful thing in the universe.

At our last meeting, the Kibworth Art Lovers enjoyed an evening of exceptional photography. Rutland photographer Richard Adams presented on the night.

For villagers in Church Langton, Kibworth, Foxton, and Great Bowden you might have heard on Easter Monday your church bells ringing for up to half an hour. Bell ringers from as far away as Cambridge and Desford descended on south Leicestershire. It was part of an Easter ‘tour’, visiting the towers of the four churches above. Some of the bells were even recorded. One of the ladies, Rebecca Banner from Desford bell ringers, is recording all the bells of Leicestershire. A joyful and very English sound and appreciated by all who heard them.

We hope you all had a wonderful Easter break involving plenty of chocolate and a lovely break.

Whether you consider that spring starts on 1 March, or at the equinox around 21 March, April is at the heart of spring.

Illston-on- the-Hill WI were privileged to host Sue Pulsford, a former police officer. The tales of her time in the force during the 1960’s left us both entertained and enlightened. Under the intriguing title ‘Heartbeat, I was there’, Sue took us on a nostalgic journey through her experiences as a pioneering woman in a predominantly male police force.