Shepperton Matters is a free monthly community magazine, launched in November 2011. The magazine is distributed to the Shepperton area every month but every issue is also available to read online right here.
Well, what a month! Celebrations in Shepperton when it found it had been voted one of the happiest places in the UK. We have a look at why. We have coffee with Diana Moran, the Green Goddess and talk health and fitness in later years and we hear about the mystery of the Millais Window in St Magdalen’s Church, Littleton.
This month we celebrate creativity and achievement as well as look at some of the blights on our community in the form of torturous construction. We meet Aylis Mae. This is the stage name of Lucy Watkins, a talented Thamesmead student who has just released her first music video. We also meet Ena Perrot who celebrated her 100th birthday.
What an issue this is. Local events galore. We have a review of the wonderful Shepperton Fair, as well as the Laleham Open Gardens. We also say goodbye to the old Mayor of Spelthorne and welcome the new one in, Alfred Friday, who has plans to make Spelthorne sparkle during his term.
As well as our usual look at Shepperton of yesteryear, we meet Fat Al, the strongman of Shepperton, who has just opened his own gym by Nauticalia. We also hear about the talent at Thamesmead School through their annual Songstar competition. Finally, we hear about the bee society and find out that we could actually learn a lot from their ways of interacting.
Bridal fashion truly comes to Shepperton, at an affordable price. The Princess Alice Hospice shop now boasts a special floor of wedding dresses, prom dresses and outfits for the mother of the bride. Brilliant. We also meet Stephen Kettle, slate sculptor to some rather special clients.
This month we meet a former lord of the manor, Sir Edward Nicolls of Littleton Park. Nearer to our world today, we talk to optician Ian Squire about his charity Mission for Vision which he set up to help those in impoverished countries in Africa who do not have access to eye care. The Shepperton Fair is not far away now and the theme has been announced as Colourful Carnival. We look at what the fair means to local primary schools who take part in the parade.
We spend a morning that The Greeno centre. It involves rugby players, dogs, welding and a visit to the hair dresser. What a morning!
We also see the launch of the Shepperton Fair photographic competition, sponsored by Shepperton Matters and attend a quiz night at Thamesmead School as part of the fundraising activities by Friends of Thamesmead.
This month we visit Battlecrease Hall in Shepperton to hear from current owners Mike Brennan and Lisa Rollin about their experiences of ghosts, poltergeists and spirits. We also meet the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey for coffee and find out about his work representing the royal family. We also talk to the old boys who worked on the river maintenance of the Thames, dredging and keeping channels clear to ensure no flooding. If only we could go back to those days!
It seems that Shepperton has it’s own Christmas ghost story. We hear tales of things that went bump in the night at Battlecrease House. We also revisit the story of the Great Wood Scramble, with further memories of the market gardening around Watersplash Road.
There is plenty to get your teeth into in the November issue. If you have time on your hands, how about getting stuck into an allotment, or perhaps a spot of woodwork at the Greeno shed? We also celebrate Spelthorne in Bloom winners and take a look back to how the Thames was by Shepperton Lock many years ago….
We explore some local stories and trades this month, in the newly merged and enlarged Shepperton Matters. Read about the great wood scramble in 1928 around Watersplash Road when the area was cleared for housing.
In this months issue read about local boatyard George Wilson’s and read about a visit to Shepperton Studios to meet with the original St Trinian’s fourth formers.
We take a trip on Impossible Dream and experience this fantastic facility taking disabled out on the river. Congratulations to the Sunbury & Shepperton Rotary Club for their achievement at the Hampton Court Flower Show.
We look at the Shepperton Fair and celebrate some of the local photographic talent in the village. This months cover features the winner of the Derek Belsey Memorial award for nature photography.
As we head into the summer, June is packed with events. See full programme for the Sunbury and Shepperton Arts Festival published in this issue. The Shepperton Fair is on June 13th, and the cover celebrates this huge community event. Also take a look at the history of the Magna Carta, or for a bit …
We say goodbye to another local pub. Harrisons Hotel as some know it, The Ship as many other will remember it, is being demolished to make way for more flats. We look back at its history. Also in the issue, read about the latest paintings for posterity reflecting the high street.
Our article on Location Location Location last month brought us news of Jean Jones in West Way whose parents bought their bungalow for £599 in the 1930s and she still lives there. We also celebrate Marianne ‘Ruby’ Price formerly of Hamhaugh Island who turned 100 recently.
Shepperton’s construction boom of the 1930’s was looking to encourage town dwellers to come out to the countryside. Not much changing there then! We look at building work in the 1930’s at the same time as rueing the ever present threat of the Eco Park with the latest protest
With so much on TV based on the Medieval and Tudor period how about taking it to another level and trying Historical Re enactment? We speak to local butcher Stephen Aldridge about his passion for history. Also in this issue, read about Swan Sanctuary founder Dot Beeson who has just been awarded an MBE.
We look at the Shepperton Cricket Club, its history and current members. Also a look at how Shepperton was in terms of agriculture and landscape in 1941. We also meet Shepperton Youth Club worker Chelsea Ranaghan.
As the Eco Park fight goes legal, how about getting a tree planted by the Spelthorne Tree Wardens to counteract it? We carry messages from the Bishop of Kensington and read childrens letters to Santa. We also say a sad farewell to Jeanette Sider.
