Ascot Stands 1910s – courtesy of Christine Weightman

Local resident Brian King has written historical pieces on a variety of subjects over the years, ranging from the Edinburgh Festival to allotments and cultivation. He tends to call them tasters, as he hopes that they will encourage readers to delve further if they are interested in the topic. He has recently turned his attention to investigating the history of Sunninghill & Ascot, principally because he thought that he knew very little about the history of this area, despite having lived here for over 30 years. The initial version of his potted history is now available on his website.

https://bkthisandthat.org.uk/potted-history-of-sunninghill-and-ascot/

NEW LETTINGS FOR THE LEXICON | The Lexicon is delighted to announce that Bill’s, Patisserie Valerie and L’Occitane will be coming to the town centre when it opens in September 2017.  

In addition, popular jewellers Ernest Jones has committed to 2260 sq ft store, substantially increasing its floor space in the town centre.

Stylish coffee shop, Patisserie Valerie, will move into a 600 sq ft shop at the entrance to the new Avenue car park in between the Fenwick and M&S stores, offering quality cakes and patisserie, continental breakfasts, lunches, the finest teas and coffees.  Its international reputation has been built on the quality of products which are hand made using artisan craft bakery skills, fresh ingredients and traditional baking methods.

Bill’s, the restaurant chain, named after its founder former greengrocer Bill Collison, will be taking 4000 sq ft on Braccan Walk.  Known for its seasonal dishes and relaxing atmosphere, Bill’s is a glorious celebration of food serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything in-between.

Renowned beauty brand L’Occitane, will be taking a 900 sq ft store on The Avenue.  L’Occitane brings the magic of Provence captured in unique skincare, bodycare products and fragrances made from the finest and most effective traditional ingredients. Inspired by the famous art de vivre of Provence, L’Occitane products are rich in active natural ingredients and beautifully scented.

Clover Lee, the talented finalist in BBC’s The Great Pottery Throw Down, paid a visit to Lili Pottery at Fernygrove Farm at the end of April. It was her first visit to the picturesque venue, and it won’t be her last.

Lilian Meeks, the owner of Lili Pottery, takes up the story. “Clover is an amazing artist. After watching her do so well in the competition, I invited her to see what we do here at Lili Pottery. She came for a visit, and I’m very excited to be able to announce that as a result, we will be working together over the summer.”

The great news is that Clover will be running courses at Lili Pottery during August, starting on Saturday 5th, including three-hour workshops focusing on working with clay or mug-making, and shorter one-to-one training sessions based on throwing clay and making small bowls on a pottery wheel. Before that, on Sunday 4^th June, Clover will be at Lili Pottery from 10.30am – 2pm, giving free clay-throwing demonstrations on the potter’s wheel.

Pictured: Aarit Bhattacharya (left) and Vimal Kamath (right)

Papplewick pupils Aarit Bhattacharya and Vimal Kamath have both won King's Scholarships to Eton.

Papplewick’s Headmaster Tom Bunbury said: “Congratulations go to these two boys, who worked very hard to win their scholarships. Only fourteen boys achieve the King’s Scholarship to Eton each year so we’re extremely proud that two of them this year are from Papplewick.”

Next Open Morning:   Saturday 4th November 2017 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m   Visit:  www.papplewick.org.uk 

About Papplewick........

Eight-year-old Jiang May Cowper, at Ascot’s The Marist School, has been named a runner-up in the primary category of the NACE Poetry Competition 2016/17, announced on April 26th.
Run annually by the National Association for Able Children in Education (NACE), the competition this year received more than 1,300 entries on the theme “new beginnings”, with the final selections
made by popular children’s author Liz Kessler.
Jiang May’s poem was inspired by her experience of moving from China to the UK, to start a new life with a new family. She said writing about the experience made her feel emotional, but she was glad
to have an opportunity to tell her story.
Judge Liz Kessler commented: “I loved the simplicity of Jiang's poem, and the way that through the simple experience of a child, some incredibly important and timely observations were made.”
A video of Jiang May reading her poem can be viewed at http://www.nace.co.uk/news/video-jiang-may-cowper-reads-runner-up-poem

Organisers of the Ascot Car Boot Sale have created a Just Giving page, to help the family of one of their long-standing staff-members and friend. Sue Byrne of South Ascot, who had lived in Ascot all her life, was well known and liked hugely popular at The Ascot Boot Sale and at Jagz - where she worked in the daytime.  She died unexpectedly in Saturday 14th April, at just 45. Sue was single parent who worked, a devoted mother who loved her children .... Connor, Finley and Erin are a credit to her. The family was saving for the holiday of a lifetime, before recent tragic events .  Her friends and colleagues are now trying to help ease their loss with this superb crowdfunding effort, which has already raised £1,795. The target is £10,000.

LINK TO JUST GIVING PAGE  https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/linda-doyle.Byrne Sue