Tag Archive for: Somerset

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Winners of the Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival Children’s Writing Competition

Dulverton’s favourite historical fiction writer, Kate Lord Brown, was again given the impossible task of choosing the winner and two runners up for the 2023 Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival Children’s Writing Competition.

This year there were 26 remarkable, top level entries from children under the age of 13 from right across Devon, Somerset and Exmoor.  The theme for this year’s competition was to write a story of up to 500 words on farming, life on a farm – really anything to do with farms, to link with Michael Morpurgo’s love of farming and his charity Farms for City Children.  See below the competition entry poster designed by Rebecca Day of The Toad Hall Company.

The entries for the Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival Children’s Writing Competition came in from far and wide – Bolham to Watchet, Bideford to Wiveliscombe – and the winner was 6 year old Fergus Brewer from Horner, near Minhead.  12 year old Amelia Toms from Bideford and 6 year old Jack Richard from Wiveliscombe were the excellent runners up.  All of them received prizes donated by Waterstones Barnstaple presented by the UK’s leading family author, Michael Morpurgo – who had just spent an hour on the festival stage chatting about his writing, farming and of course the wonderful ‘War Horse’ book, film and theatre production.

Pictured above from left to right are: Kate Lord Brown, Amelia Toms, Fergus Brewer, Jack Richards, Michael Morpurgo.

Read Fergus’ winning story here:

Bob’s Big Battle by Fergus Brewer (age 6)

Below the biggest mountain on Exmoor was a little place called Evie Farm.

It was full of wildlife and nature, but the farm was sold to a farmer who wasn’t very nice to the soil.

In the soil the microorganisms, the bacteria and fungi were having a fun time playing with each other.

The leader of the bacteria was called Bob, he was the king of the soil bacteria.

Bob is a green soil bacteria, with two small green legs and one eye with a wide smile. A friendly king who loves to play, the bacteria are invisible to humans.

While they were all playing on a sunny day, a sprayer came to the farm and the sprayer declared he would deploy his booms then travelled up and down and released the chemicals.

Luckily Bob knew just what to do.

He asked his friends the fungi to help, Bob and his fellow bacteria used the fungi to boost their strength.

Then Bob and his bacteria army headed to battle

They used their nets to capture the chemicals.

Pow, tang, whallop, urghh, kapoom

and took them deep deep deep deep underground.

And then left them there forever so they couldn’t harm the rivers, animals and soil.

The fungi and bacteria had the biggest party ever with little glow worms as their glowsticks.

The worms sang, the dung beetles played their rock and roll guitars.

People could hear them from miles around, when the party finished the microorganisms decided to take over the soil banishing the chemicals forever.

The new farmers heard their song and sent the sprayer to the scrap yard.

 

 

 

 

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Curtains down on the Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival 2023

The curtain came down on the evening of Sunday 19 November on the Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival 2023 to rapturous applause and fabulous feedback from the speakers, sponsors and members of the audience.  ‘The Exmoor event of the year’ according to Mrs W of North Devon and ‘thank you for two wonderfully interesting and stimulating days’ from Ms G of Somerset; and ‘congratulations on creating the most wonderfully diverse, yet completely connected literary festival’, from editor Mrs M.

From the ‘Survival and Adventure’ talk L to R: travel publisher Hilary Bradt, British explorer Belinda Kirk, festival director Ali Pegrum, UK military survival expert John Hudson

A wide variety of talks and topics

Michael Morpurgo’s talk on Sunday was an event highlight – where he chatted with writer Alice Thomson about his classic ‘War Horse’ and treated the audience of all ages to a reading of a poem about the tortoise and hare, and even sang a beautiful folk song.  ‘Morpurgo was a complete joy’ wrote Mrs B of Dulverton.

 

Rachel Johnson’s (pictured above) enlightening talk about her life in the political arena attracted another huge audience, in conversation with art critic Rachel Campbell-Johnston.  Writers Julian Glover and Victoria Eveleigh discussed the complexities of the use and protection of the countryside, in the company of a fascinated audience that included many Exmoor farmers and landowners.

 

‘Duchesses Behaving Badly’ became the in-house title for a lively talk with historical biographers Andrew Lownie and Catherine Ostler.  Their books about Edward VIII and the Duchess of Windsor, and the 18thC Duchess of Kingston sold like hot cakes in the popup event bookshop run by Waterstones of Barnstaple.

 

Other topics in the weekend’s programme included railways, wine, the benefits of challenge and adventure, and creativity in its many forms – the latter with writer Albert Read, celebrity photographer Harry Borden and editor Miranda Taylor.  Lovers of fiction were treated to a talk with three remarkable novelists – Sarah Turner, Hannh Richell and Janet Ellis – all of whom have new books in the pipeline coming very soon.  Janet, a former Blue Peter presenter, said ‘the atmosphere couldn’t have been nicer and [the whole event] sparkled!’

The Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival 2023 Children’s Writing Competition

Historical novelist Kate Lord Brown judged the festival’s Children’s Writing Competition and Michael Morpurgo handed the prizes to winner Fergus Brewer (age 6) and runners up Amelia Toms (age 12) and Jack Richards (age 6).  Fergus’ incredibly imaginative and creative story delighted the audience and can be found here on this website. Pictured above are L to R: Kate Lord Brown, runner up Amelia Toms, winner Fergus Brewer, runner up Jack Richards, Michael Morpurgo.

 

The event was sponsored by local businesses Tozers Solicitors, Amicus Law, Stockham Farm Exmoor, The Exclusive Cake Company, Exmoor Character Cottages, Exmoor News, First Design, Hedley Price, Jeff Pegrum Landscaping, Maitland Walker, Osteo & Physio Tiverton,  Risdon Hosegood, The Sip Shed, Town Mills, Ware Construction, Wellhayes Vineyard, Winsbere House, The Bridge Inn Dulverton, James Pryce Tractors, Masons Kings, Rothwell & Dunworth and Fabula Arts.

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Dulverton’s Secret Gardens contribute to major Exmoor appeal!

The ‘Secret Gardens of Dulverton’ day on 2 July was a great success and Visit Dulverton is delighted to announce that profits from the garden visitors and cake sales have meant that a generous donation has been made to Exmoor National Park’s CareMoor charity.  Ten private gardens were especially opened for the day across the pretty moorland town of Dulverton and visitors were treated to unusual plants, summer colour and careful landscaping – and tea and cakes in the Town Hall of course!

Christine Dubery, Chair of Dulverton Town Council, was keen for any profits from the day to be made as a charitable donation to a local relevant cause.  After discussion with the Visit Dulverton team and with the ten garden owners themselves, a donation of £1000 was made to Exmoor National Park’s CareMoor ‘Sowing the Seeds Appeal’. Christine said: “We are delighted to have been able to give back to our local community in this way – and our huge thanks to the owners of the ten gardens for kindly opening their gardens and making this a possibility. We look forward to opening more of Dulverton’s ‘secret’ gardens to visitors next summer.”

Katrina Munro, ENPA’s Sustainable Economy Officer said: “Thank you so much for the donation from the Open Gardens to our Sowing the Seeds Appeal.  It will help with the purchase of a new piece of specialist equipment required and the setting up of a wildflower seed nursery on ENPA land at Exford”.

The ENP website explains that meadows attract a multitude of wildlife and often support flora and fauna that cannot thrive in other habitats. Typically characterised by species such as black knapweed, ox-eye daisy, yellow rattle, hawkbits, vetches and rarer orchids, they can also support colourful waxcap fungi with names such as parrot, snowy and crimson. In addition to being aesthetically beautiful, they are ecologically important as they provide areas for pollinating insects, nesting, food gathering, shelter and even animal courtship displays.

Like other ecosystems, meadows experience increased pressure due to climate change, especially as precipitation and weather conditions change. However, grasslands and meadows also have an important climate change mitigation potential as carbon sinks; deep-rooted grasses store a substantial amount of carbon in soil.

The ENPA have been running informative sessions about the creation of wildflower meadows, one of which was attended by Visit Dulverton volunteer Ken Warren who said:  “The session in Simonsbath included a presentation on how to convert grassland, whether a garden lawn or many acres, into a wildflower meadow. We were shown a brush harvester which is used to collect fresh seed from existing wildflower meadows. That seed is then used to sow potential new meadows. We then walked to nearby land where many, many acres of wildflower meadows have been created. To see meadows as some of us might remember them was a privilege and a memorable experience.”

For more information on the Sowing the Seeds Appeal visit: ENPA CareMoor Sowing the Seeds Appeal

Main image by Emma How of Dulverton – one of four Highly Commended photographs entered into the 2022 Dulverton Photographic Competition.

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Competition winners at the Dulverton Antiques Valuation Day!

Many thanks to all those who came along to the Dulverton Antiques Valuation Day on Saturday 23 September – and particularly the expert valuers from our friends at Adam Partridge Autioneers.

 

Visitors were invited to bring along their antiques, jewellery, fine art & collectors’ items.  For a donation of £5 (for a maximum of three items) the specialists on hand gave a valuation and history of the items that were brought along.  A lovely cotton tablecloth bought in a junk shop 40 years ago was discovered to have an amazing maritime history, dating from August 2014 with a value of £150+ being placed on it!

There was also a new fun competition at the event, when visitors (and the experts!) were asked to guess “WHAT IS THE ANTIQUE ITEM?”  Three unique antique items were generously loaned for the competition by local friends and displayed…

No 1 – a Victorian Silver Plated Spoon Warmer (made by Elkington & Co and dating from 1880)

No 2 – a 20th Century Wooden Ruan – a traditional Chinese lute (plucked string instrument).

No 3 – a Victorian Copper Beer Strainer (which had to be displayed upside down)

And the winners are…. Sarah and Steve Adams of Dulverton who correctly guessed two of the three items.  They will receive the prize of a bottle of wine donated by Dulverton’s Town Mills B&B! Many thanks to all those that took part in the competition in great humour.  A favourite guess was that the Spoon Warmer was a headless three-legged silver hedgehog!

Visit Dulverton always likes to promote the message of “repair, reuse, repurpose, recycle” with other stalls at the event – including Oggies Music Shop of Dulverton, Tim Venning’s Workshop (who can be found regularly at the Dulverton Farmers Market) and the team from the Somerset Waste Partnership who took donations of unwanted smart tech to recycle.  Somerset’s bright blue Fixy Van was parked right outside the door!

 

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Tickets for the Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival 2023 go live!

The programme for the Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival 2023 is complete, packed with top name author talks across Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 November in Dulverton Town Hall.  Tickets are NOW ON SALE HERE and the printed programme is available to pick up from locations across Exmoor, Devon and Somerset.

 

Michael Morpurgo needs no introduction as one of the UK’s most celebrated writers – he will be conversing with writer Alice Thomson on his new book about life on his Devon farm.  Rachel Johnson will talk about her fascinating life in the political arena, with writer Rachel Campbell-Johnston.  Historical biographers Andrew Lownie and Catherine Ostler will discuss their biographies of two very different duchesses involved in scandals, interviewed by historical novelist Kate Lord Brown.  This year’s ‘Book Club’ fiction panel will include best-selling novelists Janet Ellis, Sarah Turner and Hannah Richell.

 

Restaurant critic and MasterChef judge William Sitwell will be with award-winning wine writer Henry Jeffreys on the remarkable revolution of British vineyards. Julian Glover, writer and author of the Government’s Landscapes Review: National Parks and AONBs will be with Exmoor farmer and writer Victoria Eveleigh discussing ‘What is our countryside for?’  Another fascinating session will be celebrity photographer Harry Borden and writer Albert Read in conversation with travel editor Miranda Taylor on the subject of enhancing creativity.

 

Dulverton will also welcome British explorer Belinda Kirk, UK top survival expert John Hudson and travel writer Hilary Bradt discussing survival and adventure.  Well-known ITV sports reporter Dennis Coath will recount some funny anecdotes from his many interviews over the years; and local railway historians Freddie Huxtable, Ian Coleby and Amyas Crump will talk on the subject of our local lost railways.

 

Festival Director, Ali Pegrum said “There is already a huge buzz about the 2023 Literary Festival right across Exmoor and tickets are selling fast!  Our thanks to the amazing group of writers for taking part in the event and creating a literary celebration of which Devon and Somerset should be very proud.”

 

The popular Dulverton Exmoor Literary Festival Children’s Writing Competition returns, with prizes donated by Waterstones Barnstaple to be presented this year by Michael Morpurgo.  Waterstones will again provide a popup bookshop in the Town Hall with author book signing.  Creative writing workshops for adults and children will be held in Dulverton Library on the Saturday.  All information and tickets can be found via visdulverton.com.

 

The event has been generously sponsored by local businesses Tozers Solicitors, The Exclusive Cake Company, Exmoor Character Cottages, Exmoor News, First Design, Friendship & Sons, Hedley Price, Jeff Pegrum Landscaping, Maitland Walker, Osteo & Physio, Risdon Hosegood, The Sip Shed, Stockham Farm Exmoor, Town Mills, Ware Construction, Wellhayes Vineyard, Winsbere House, The Bridge Inn Dulverton, James Pryce Tractors, Masons Kings, Rothwell & Dunworth and Fabula Arts.

 

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The Dulverton Antiques Valuation Day is back – with a competition!

Following the success of the first Dulverton Antiques Valuation Day in March, Adam Partridge (from the TV’s Flog It!, Antiques Road Trip and Bargain Hunt) and his team of auctioneers are returning to the beautiful market town of Dulverton for another valuation event – and a fun competition for all to enter!

Visitors will be invited to bring along their antiques, jewellery, fine art & collectors’ items.  For a donation of £5 (for a maximum of three items) the specialists on hand will give a valuation and history of the items that are brought along.  All items must be portable – in other words, small enough to carry! No appointments necessary, first come, first served with a simple ticketing system at the door. Refreshments will be available and the bar will be open.

There will also be a new fun competition at the event, when visitors will be asked to guess “WHAT IS THE ITEM?”  Three unique antique items will be displayed and competitors will be invited to write down what they believe the item to be and what was its original intended use.  The first person to guess all three correctly will win a bottle of wine donated by Dulverton’s Town Mills B&B! Thinking caps on! Will we need Fiona Bruce from The Antiques Roadshow to help us?!

Visit Dulverton is also promoting the message of “repair, reuse, repurpose, recycle” with other stalls at the event – including Oggies Music Shop, Tim Venning’s Workshop and the team from the Somerset Waste Partnership who will take donations of unwanted smart tech to recycle.  Somerset’s bright blue Fixy Van will be parked right outside the door!

Visit the event page to learn more.

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Entries coming in for the Dulverton Trail Fun Run and Canicross

Running across the beautiful countryside around the pretty moorland town of Dulverton in the Exmoor National Park is clearly very popular – as entries for this year’s Dulverton Trail Fun Run and Canicross are coming in thick and fast!

 

For the third consecutive year, runners of all ages and abilities are invited to enter the event which will take place on the morning of Sunday 17 September.  With the start and finish taking place on the Exmoor Lawns alongside the River Barle in front of Exmoor House, the routes of 5km and 10km guide runners across beautiful Exmoor countryside.  Who will be brave enough to tackle the steep woodland track that has become known as the Dulverton Demon?

 

Dulverton is known to be a particularly dog-friendly town and there is the opportunity to run either the 5km or 10km routes as a traditional canicross race – with all the fun of letting your dog(s) help you along the paths and up and down the hills!

 

Numbers are strictly limited so runners are advised to book their places well in advance to avoid disappointment.  Full details and booking links can be found here: https://bookwhen.com/dulvertonevents

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Dulverton Fun Run & Canicross is back in September!

The Dulverton Fun Run & Canicross is back in September!  Runners of all ages and abilities are invited to enter for the third annual event to take place on the morning of Sunday 17 September.

With the start and finish taking place on the Exmoor Lawns in this delightful moorland town alongside the River Barle, the routes of 5km and 10km guide runners across beautiful Exmoor countryside around Dulverton.  Who will be brave enough to tackle the steep woodland track that has become known as the Dulverton Demon?

 

Dulverton is known to be a particularly dog-friendly town and there is the opportunity to run either the 5km or 10km routes as a traditional canicross race – with all the fun of letting your dog(s) help you along the paths and up and down the hills!

 

With the environment at the top of minds, the organisers invited local business Exmoor Engraving to create some unique wooden medals for all race finishers.

 

Numbers are strictly limited so runners are advised to book their places well in advance to avoid disappointment.  Full details and booking links can be found here: https://bookwhen.com/dulvertonevents

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Summer events taking place in Dulverton in July!

The next couple of summer weekends will be full of outdoor fun in the pretty Exmoor town of Dulverton, the Southern Gateway to Exmoor.

On Sunday 2 July ten gorgeous gardens will be opened by Dulverton residents from 10am to 4.30pm for the ‘Secret Gardens of Dulverton’.  This is a rare opportunity to visit some of the delightful gardens that are normally hidden away. The gardens are of all shapes, sizes and stages of development, and are all located within walking distance of the centre of the town, making it easy to visit all of them during the day.  Refreshments will be served at Dulverton Town Hall throughout the day. See the website for ticket information. Dogs are welcome in most of the gardens.

Then on Saturday 8 July the Dulverton Artisan Food, Drink & Crafts Festival returns to Dulverton’s picturesque Exmoor Lawns beside the River Barle in the heart of the town.  Free to attend from 10am to 4.30pm this excellent event celebrates the many artisan producers located across Exmoor, the Quantocks and Devon.  The perfect opportunity to shop truly local and support many local small independent businesses.

You’ll discover over 35 stalls from local producers – a selection of gifts, leather goods, textiles, ceramics, soaps, homeware and of course home-produced meat, beer, cider, bread, spirits, cocktails, cakes, preserves and more. Treat yourself to a bunch of cottage garden-inspired bee-friendly flowers from the fabulous Jessica’s Gardens of Cullompton (pictured above)!

Go to the Visit Dulverton website to discover more about all of the town’s forthcoming events https://visitdulverton.com/events/   Supported by Dulverton Town Council.

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The Secret Gardens of Dulverton to open on 2 July!

Only 4 weeks until the pretty Exmoor town of Dulverton opens its ‘Secret Gardens’ for all to enjoy!

 

On Sunday 2 July ten gorgeous gardens will be opened by Dulverton residents from 10am to 4.30pm.  This is a rare opportunity to visit some of the delightful gardens that are normally hidden away. The gardens are of all shapes, sizes and stages of development, some being established for many years, while others are more recently started. They are all located within walking distance of the centre of the town, making it easy to visit all of them during the day.

 

The entrance fee of £5 (in advance) or £7 (on the day) includes a map showing each garden’s location, together with a short description written by the owner. Tickets can be bought in advance from Dulverton Post Office or the Tantivy shop.  Alternatively tickets will be available to buy on the day in Dulverton Town Hall, along with delicious refreshments.

 

Known as the Southern Gateway to Exmoor, Dulverton is one of the main towns on the moor.  It is situated on the River Barle in West Somerset on the southern edge of the Moor and has the oldest mediaeval bridge on Exmoor. There are pleasant walks along the riverbank and the meandering leat which used to power 4 mills. Located in the main square is the National Park Centre, behind which is the Heritage Centre which houses exhibitions about the heritage of the town. This thriving community town has a wide range of independent shops, cafés, restaurants and pubs.

 

The event is organised by Dulverton Town Council and Visit Dulverton and a donation will be made to local charities.

 

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Tag Archive for: Somerset

Exmoor Wine Appreciation Society January Tasting

Exmoor Wine Appreciation Society events will be held every three months in Dulverton Town Hall on the last Thursday of the month.  The Society is generously sponsored by Duke Wealth.

Bringing people together in a fun environment to share wines from around the world!

Exmoor Wine Appreciation Society January Tasting

Thursday 25 January 2024

“Sharpham Wines”

Mark Searight, Sandridge Barton Wines Ltd, based across the border in Devon will be sharing eight of the best Sharpham wines with us, and discussing the joys and challenges of English wine production.

Event and Membership Details

Welcome wine served on arrival at 7.30pm, talk begins once everyone is seated at 8pm.

During the two-hour tasting our speaker will introduce us to a selection of about eight different wines; cheese and crackers will be served.

£20 an evening’s tasting and talk for members.

£28 for non-members.

Yearly membership (September to August) £15 (initially this will include a box of 6 tasting glasses).

Booking and payment before an event is essential.

All enquiries to info@e-was.co.uk

 

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