Portrait of Pembridge Blog 16
March 2025
Photography and Art Awards
The first Portrait of Pembridge Photography and Art Awards will take place on 22nd March.
Entries are now invited and will close at 8pm on 21 March.
There are classes for both photographs and artwork depicting historic and contemporary Pembridge life.
Awards will be made to 1st, 2nd and 3rd entries in each class.
Special Awards will be made to those who gain most points in the following categories:
Portrait of Pembridge Artist
Portrait of Pembridge Photographer
Portrait of Pembridge Young Artist
Portrait of Pembridge Young Photographer
There’s also an art competition for under 12s
A centre piece of the exhibition will be the unique Williams Hill collection of photographs of Pembridge in the early 20th century.
If you have old photos or postcards of Pembridge and the surrounding countryside do enter them in the competition and help us build up the biggest record of our past. Photos of, or the originals, can be submitted.
We hope to make a record of modern-day Pembridge too, so that future generations may see how life in this community has evolved.
We’ve already seen a lot of amazing photos of our beautiful countryside, and historic buildings. We know there are many talented artists and photographers out there so do look at the rules and entry form on our website.
www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk/photo-comp
Pembridge Tapestries
To mark the 10th Anniversary of the creation of the Pembridge Tapestries an exhibition of them and sone new additions will be hosted in St Mary’s Church on 8th March.
Local composer Andy Davies has created an evening of music and song performed by residents which will tell the story of the 1,000 years of Pembridge history depicted in the Tapestries .
www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk/events-calendar
200 Mile Charity Cycle Ride
A man from Marston will be representing Pembridge & Shobdon Royal British Legion on a sponsored cycle ride through the Netherlands to raise funds for the RBL and in memory of his late father who fought and died in WWII.
You can read his story in
www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk/news
and sponsor him here
https://royalbritishlegion.enthuse.com/pf/ian-smith-e07ff
VE Day 80
Preparations are already in hand for celebrations of the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe on 8th May,
Eagle eyed readers may have noticed the recent disappearance of the flagpole by the War Memorial and the tidying of the surrounding area by the RBL and PIPs
8th May will see it restored and the addition of a bench with a QR code linked to
www.portratitofpembridge.co.uk/warmemorial
This tells the stories of the fallen men of Pembridge from both World Wars and recent conflicts.
A plaque will also be added to the memorial containing the names of other Pembridge veterans, whose service was researched by the late Rory MacColl, and who were omitted from the memorial.
History Trail
Pembridge History Group is planning a history trail through the village which will provide information for both residents and visitors.
If you have any stories, photos, deeds, wills, news cuttings and other documents which shed light on our history please email portraitofpembridge@yahoo.co.uk
School’s Out
1925-100 years ago, was a difficult year for Mr James Ayers, Headmaster of Pembridge CE Primary School.
He shares his frustrations in his diary as the school year is disrupted by one disaster after another.
We retell his annus horrilibus in our History section.
www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk/history
Pembridge and Shobdon RBL Wins Award
The branch was delighted to receive a Beacon Branch Award from Stephen Cole, County Chairman
The events programme gained this award for the branch.
Upcoming events include talks at the New Inn in March and April on the Secret Resistance Movement in Herefordshire and Poison Darts.
A coach trip to the Malvern Spring Show is planned for May
Non members are welcome. See Dates for your Diary for details
www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk/news
Something Fishy at the Parish Hall
The Parish Hall Committee are now making the Tabletop Sale a monthly event, to take place on the last Saturday of each month.
A new addition to this is Paul’s Fresh Fish which will be at the Tabletop Sale each month.
For details see www.pembridgeparishhall.co.uk
Grow Your Own
Pembridge Allotment Association has allotments available to rent. The allotments are at the western end of the village just before the turning for Westonbury Mill Water Gardens. Applicants may contact Rosie at the New Inn or call Anita on 07793 287943
Opera, Ballet, Theatre, and Films
There’s a wide range of performances this month with Ballet, Opera and Theatre at the Parish Hall and Pembridge Film Nights at the New Inn.
Racing Royalty , Bob Champion CBE, Tom Scudamore and Richard Johnson will be in conversation at the Parish Hall.
How lucky are we to have all this on our doorsteps.
For details see
www.portraitofpembridge/events-calendar
Mortimer Medical Practice
We welcome the addition of Mortimer Medical Practice to our Community Groups page.
The practice issues a regular newsletter to keep patients informed of changes at the practice and important health information.
You can read this now on
www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk/community-groups
Emergency First Aid
Would you know what to do if a family member, friend, or colleague collapsed?
Living in a rural community has many advantages but one big disadvantage is that help can take a long time to come in an emergency.
According to NHS data average waiting times in England for a response to a suspected stroke or heart attack have risen to 43 minutes.
Help given immediately can significantly alter the outcome.
The parish now has three defibrillators at:-
The Parish Hall,
East Street Car Park, and
Broxwood Telephone Box
You can learn how to use one and other potentially lifesaving techniques
At the Herefordshire Heartstart Couse
14th March
Pembridge Parish Hall
www.pembridgeparishhall.co.uk/events
Spread the Word
We are keen to reach as many parishioners as possible. If you know someone who doesn’t yet receive our blog and “ Dates for your Diary” straight to their inbox, please encourage them to sign up for this free service on portraitofpembridge@yahoo.co.uk
Join the Team
If you’d like to join our team of historians, researchers, writers, photographers, and website designers you would be most welcome.
If you can spare a couple of hours a week we would love to hear from you. Please email portraitofpembridge@yahoo.co.uk or call Kay 07342 625796 or Barry 07711 406306 for a chat about what’s involved.
For updates follow us on Facebook or log on to our website: www.portraitofpembridge.co.uk
Kay Ingram
