MARTINBOROUGH RUGBY CLUB

Our Senior players have been training hard, and with a couple of pre seasons games played, they are ready to start the 2017 season. The Premier competition starts this Saturday 8 April against Greytown, over in Greytown so show your support and get to see the new playing strip being worn for the first time!
Our first Senior home game will be on Saturday 22 April vs Gladstone, this will a great opportunity to check out our players new gear, our newly painted goal posts (thanks Trevor Hawkins and Kim Lace!), the moving of our No1 field, AND awesome looking post protectors and flags generously sponsored by Mitre 10 Martinborough.
The JAB competition starts on the 13 May, our Registration Night has been but if your child is keen to play you can register via the link on our website or contact Becs Madden for more information 0273394153. … Continue Reading

Artistic Directors Appointed for Martinborough Music Festival

A classical music festival between 29 September-October 1st was announced for Martinborough in the March STAR. Pianist, Michael Houstoun, will launch the Festival giving the Schimmel Grand Piano, gifted by the late Cherry van Kranen to the Martinborough community, its first public outing. Well known musicians and former NZSO players, Vicki Jones and Ed Allen, are the Artistic Directors for the Festival. Winifred Bull asked them for some thoughts.

What excites you about a classical music festival for Martinborough?
Vicki Martinborough has become famous for its wine, food, big vineyard concerts, and jazz festival-why not a classical music festival too? I would love Martinborough to become a regular destination for lovers of classical music. Ed The audience will have the opportunity to hear a wide variety of music in a relatively short space of time performed by excellent musicians. … Continue Reading

Big Ben

Britain’s oldest manufacturing business, a London bell foundry that made Big Ben, could be sold after its owner decided to vacate its historic East End premises.
The Whitechapel Bell Foundry began life in 1570 during the reign of Elizabeth I. It moved to its site on Whitechapel Road in 1739 and has traded from the building since.
The Guinness Book of Records lists the foundry, one of only two left in the UK, as Britain’s oldest manufacturer – having traded continuously for 446 years.
The foundry has been owned by the Hughes family since 1904. Alan Hughes and his wife Kathryn have sold the grade II-listed building on Whitechapel Road and are considering options for when the foundry leaves in May 2017.

Alan Hughes said: “We have made this decision with a heavy heart, but in response to the changing realities of running a business of this kind. The business has been at its present site over 250 years so it is probably about time it moved once again. We hope that this move will provide an opportunity for the business to move forward in a new direction.”

Book review

Cat among the Pigeons

It can be rewarding to spend some time browsing among the library’s older books, a recent such was finding Dame Cath Tizzard’s biography Cat among the pigeons, published in 2010. Dame Caths had quite a tale to tell. Catherine McLean came to New Zealand as the two year old daughter of Scottish post war assisted immigrants to one day become New Zealand’s Governor General.

Her father was employed as the engineer at the dairy factory at Waihora, a job he held until he retired. Dame Cath attended the local twenty pupil school. She went to Auckland University but did not finish her studies breaking off to marry a tutor Bob Tizzard. … Continue Reading