Regular Features - Henley Standard

Such natural beauty along the riverside that I almost break into poetry

ONCE again, we head out early today. Rosemary drives us to Henley and parks in the Mill Lane car park shortly before 10am. We set off to take a peek at the River Thames, which looks in fine fettle. We walk into town along the riverside, noting the odd...

When it comes to dropsy, doctors often have to think like detective

ALTHOUGH the word “dropsy” sounds like something you might name a pet rabbit, in reality it was the name previously given to the condition we now know as oedema. Both words have their origins in Greek (hydrops meaning “water” and oidein “swelling”)...

Wonderful old woodland with some strange-looking trees of all varieties

AFTER a good 10 months’ absence, we find ourselves back in Harpsden Wood, just over a mile south of Henley. Owned by the Woodland Trust, it was acquired in 1991 with significant local contributions. In 1995 the adjacent Peveril Wood was added to the...

Quiet rural hideaway where we can take our time to admire nature

ON an early September morning we head out to Newnhamhill Bottom, which lies in a dip in the land below and to the north of Stoke Row and the steep Witheridge Hill. I love it out here as it is hardly known with little traffic and a scattering of...

Never put something smaller than an elbow in your ear

I WAS rather disappointed to learn that Guinness World Records did not have a section on ear wax. Considering they have categories including most tooth picks in a beard, farthest arrow shot using feet and largest haggis, to leave ear wax out seems...

Let's Get Down to Business: Jacob Wilson, master distiller and co-owner of Henley Distillery

JACOB WILSON is a master distiller and co-owner of the Henley Distillery, which he co-founded with his father Alan, a sculptor, and is ...

Riverside plants seem to extend their flowering season every year

AFTER leaving home in Caversham, we head towards Henley on the A4155. We love the sign that welcomes us into Oxfordshire. As we pass ...

More viruses to look out for, especially in babies and young children

IT would be easy to overlook the fact that a baby doesn’t breathe while in the womb. In fact, our lungs are filled with fluid and ...

Successful search for fungi with professor (and a detour via the pub)

AT 10.20am on the last day of August, we arrive at Nippers Grove, near Wyfold, just north of the ominous sounding Gallowstree Common. ...

Let's Get Down to Business: Sarah Hart, owner of H'artisan

SARAH HART and her husband Nick own H’artisan, a speciality coffee shop in Wargrave high street. Sarah was born and raised in Truro ...

Return to an old haunt where there’s always something new to see

IT’S just after 7am so I get up. Rosemary is ahead of me after being hassled by our perpetually hungry cat Cilla, as usual. She is, as ...

Deer and slugs eat helleborine heads while I enjoy half rack of ribs

THE weather forecast on the radio had sounded gloomy but the morning turns out to be bright, so we set off after breakfast to explore. ...

Shingles can be painful (and it has got nothing to do with the beach)

SHINGLES, a name that manages to be at once cheerful while also being slightly sinister. It would be a good name for an untrustworthy ...

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Let's Get Down to Business: Amy Bryant, Bluebells of Henley

AMY BRYANT is co-owner of Bluebells of Henley, the florists in Reading Road, which she runs with her mother Molly. She was born and ...

A case of missing orchids and discovering one culprit (the council)

AT 6am our cat Cilla jumps in through an open bedroom window and proceeds to bounce up and down on me before biting Rosemary’s ...

You’d don’t need PhD to appreciate nature but some could use brain...

WE drive to Mapledurham, which is only a few miles from home in Caversham but we have not been for some time. The neat, small village ...

Let's Get Down to Business: Nic Barclay Wood, Barclay Wood Motor Co

NIC BARCLAY WOOD is the proprietor of the Barclay Wood Motor Co at White Hill Garage on Remenham Hill. He was born in Maidenhead and ...

More News:

Just paper talk...

I AM pleased to report that Goring Parish Council has agreed to renew its subscription to the Henley Standard. The council, which had not met since May 4, made a decision under ... [more]

Demolition opposition

A HOUSE in Sonning Common could be demolished and replaced with two new ones. Gareth Bertram has applied to South Oxfordshire District Council, the planning authority, to build ... [more]

£250 grant for choir

A CHOIR in Sonning Common has been given a grant of £250. Harmony, which meets at Peppard War Memorial Hall in Gallowstree Road every Thursday from 1.20pm, was awarded the money ... [more]

Rhyme return

RHYME time sessions at Sonning Common library have restarted. They will take place from 10am on every first and third Monday of the month. Numbers are limited to allow for social ... [more]