Free Concert at St Mary’s Old Church with Resonate
Once again, following their visit last July, The Resonate Choir will be performing at St. Mary’s Old Church on Sunday, July 6th at 4 pm. This free event, hosted by the Friends of St. Mary’s Old Church, promises a truly unique and enjoyable musical experience for all ages.
💳 Admission is free – Donations (cash or card) are warmly welcome and will go directly toward preserving this historic church.
🥂 Complimentary refreshments and free parking available on-site.
Resonate Choir
RESONATE is a passionate collective of singers originally formed within a world music choir in Colchester. With over 15 years of shared musical experience, they’ve branched out to embrace a richly varied repertoire that spans continents and cultures:
Popping into the supermarkets at this time of the year, we are often met by signs which say something along the lines of ‘The taste of summer’, which have all been hung strategically in aisles full of foods suitable for picnics on the beach and BBQ’s in our gardens, outdoor, social gatherings with friends and family.
What is it?
So what is the taste of summer? I guess it’s fresh salads, ice cream, BBQ with the hint of charcoal as an added extra, all washed down with our favourite ice-cold drinks. These are the foods that the supermarkets hope will evoke the image of long hot summer days.
June has a way of lifting our spirits. The days stretch out like a cat in the sun, flowers burst into colour, and the scent of BBQs and freshly cut grass fills the air. It’s the month where nature seems to throw a garden party—and we’re all invited.
There’s something wonderfully hopeful about June. The Bible tells us:
The next Guided Walk at Hillhouse Wood is taking place this Saturday 10th May with an early start.
The Dawn Chorus (links to a previous report) walk starts from St Mary’s Old Church at 3:45 am on 10th May. This walk affords the opportunity to see Nightingales and many other brilliant dawn choristers. For this walk you should bring warm clothing, stout footwear, a flask of hot drink and a torch.
Although these walks are normally well attended it is likely that they don’t always fall on a convenient date or time. Well, the Friends of Hillhouse Wood have been working hard to put this right.
Welcome to Online Guided Walks
Putting together:
a Google Map that can help you navigate through the woods, and
YouTube videos describing what you might see at up to 17 waypoints,
At the start of this year Vocal Zones Choir decided to start a review of the choir and have implemented some changes; both the committee and the membership have been engaged in this process. They are pleased to announce a new name as one of the changes; they will now be known as Vocal Zone Singers. Members & the Committee feel that this name better represents the ethos of the group. They are not a formal choir; but simply a group of people who enjoy singing and like to meet together in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. The singers are all excited by the new direction the committee and membership wants to take their singing group.
They hope that this new photo better reflects the upbeat, friendly and sunny disposition of the group.
May begins and ends with a bank holiday, which is always rather nice, and with the spring well established now, and as we look towards the summer, we might hope that the bank holidays won’t disappoint us and will produce some good weather, perhaps even giving us the opportunity for a BBQ or family picnic.
80 years ago on 8th May earlier generations celebrated the end of war in Europe, or VE-Day as it was dubbed. As BBC Radio, and the Newspapers, announced the news, workers left their buildings to join in ad hoc celebrations in the street. Later they would organise street parties as well.
In that spirit of celebration, whilst at the same time commemorating the losses, West Bergholt PC are joining many others in organising (free) events on this date.
The following free events are being hosted by the Friends of St Mary’s Old Church in 2025.
Sunday 11 May – Talk by local historian John Worland on ‘The First Elizabethan Witch Trial’. 2.30pm – free refreshments
Sunday 8 June – Talk by Adam Wightman, Director of Colchester Archaeological Trust on ‘The Former Essex County Hospital Site’’. 2.30pm – free refreshments
Sunday 20 July – Summer Songs of Praise Service – 2.30pm – free refreshments
Sunday 30 November – Mulled Wine & Mince Pies with the Octavia Singers – 11am-1pm. This event is also an opportunity to register or reregister as a Friend of St. Mary’s Old Church
Sunday 21 December – Candlelit Carol Service
As usual everyone is welcome, there’s free parking and free refreshments including a glass of prosecco. Entry to all events is free but the Friends welcome any donations made on the day (cash or card). This will support the ongoing upkeep of the beautiful 1000-year-old church. We look forward to welcoming you there. For more information, or if you wish to tell us you’re coming, please email [email protected].
At both of the following events there will also be an opportunity for a Q&A session.
Following the Winter Bird walk, Steve Hallam will be leading two guided walks in the coming weeks:
Spring Flower Walk – starting from St Mary’s Old Church at 2 pm on 26th April, &
Dawn Chorus, also from St Mary’s Old Church at the somewhat earlier time of 3:45 am on 10th May. This walk affords the opportunity to see Nightingales and many other brilliant dawn choristers. For this walk you should bring warm clothing, stout footwear, a flask of hot drink and a torch.
The links above are to reports from previous walks. We recommend you wear strong boots or wellies since you may well need to walk through long wet grass!
The Friends of Hillhouse Wood is a group of local residents who work with The Woodland Trust to look after this beautiful remnant of ancient woodland. You will also be able to see them at the Village Fete on Saturday 14th June.
Winter Bird Walk 2025
One aspect of observing nature that makes it so compelling is that you never know what you will see and hear. Will it surpass expectations, or disappoint? As mentioned in previous years, this winter bird walk is the one that has the potential to provide ‘thin gruel’. Over the years there seems to be reduced numbers of over wintering birds in this area, especially earlier on in the season. This is why the date of the walk has moved back by a few weeks.
Unduly Pessimistic
This year, I had done some preparatory surveys in the days before the walk, and had seen relatively little. Nevertheless, 14 people came along, which was very pleasing. I thought that I should ‘manage expectations’ but, as it turned out, I was being unduly pessimistic.
