Regulars

Natural charms of this Chiltern escarpment are priceless

SHIRBURN HILL is located about a mile north of Christmas Common and a mile south of the M40. It is another glorious Site of Special Scientific Interest and can be accessed on foot from the road that runs north towards Chinnor. This particular hillside...

Woodland vandals should have more respect for our natural heritage

IF you go down to Lambridge Wood tonight you may be in for a big surprise. Motorcyclists unconcerned about the fact that these woods are a Site of Special Scientific Interest might be tearing about illegally and grubbing up one of Henley’s little...

Lady B’s ‘back garden’ is natural wonderland in the Chilterns

WHEN you love nature as much as I do, and have the chance to share your enthusiasm by writing about it, life can sometimes take quite an unexpected and exquisite turn. A part of the local landscape that you may have looked at on an Ordnance Survey map...

Rich meadow of flowers and insects almost too wonderful for words

MY good friend Matt Coome picks me up from home. On Monday last week was St Swithin’s day and it did not rain so according to folklore we are due a further 40 days of glorious sunny weather. Today is no exception to the prophesy but when I mention...

Nature notes

MAPLEDURHAM is a very old place indeed, how old I don’t know but it is quite a serene hamlet. The Elizabethan house and watermill are quite rightly famous but as we depart from St Margaret’s Church I’m more taken with the little almshouses to our...

From nearly standing on a snake to seeing a rare gem at the roadside

I HAVE boarded the no 25 bus in Prospect Street, Caversham, with my mother Maggie. We’re heading north through Emmer Green and Sonning ...

Common spotted, fragrant and pyramidals... orchids everywhere

SWAIN’S WOOD is a nature reserve in Buckinghamshire and leased to the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust by the ...

Nature reserve on my doorstep makes me feel happy (shots excepted)

AFTER a pretty wet spell, things have brightened up somewhat so I decide to visit the nature reserve on my doorstep, Clayfield Copse ...

Returning to an old haunt in search of botanical rarities

HAVING not been there for some years, my friend Dave Kenny and I decide to visit Warburg nature reserve at Bix Bottom. We are not ...

Hartslock nature reserve: flower-rich gem akin to terrestrial heaven

ONE of my mother’s little robins is looking distressed. Hugging the side of my right foot, he is not interested in any food, he just ...

An abundance of common wildflowers and a single rare one

THE sun has definitely got his hat on today. It is Tuesday, May 21 and so wonderful, bright and clear that it brings cheer to the ...

Apart from pond life, the wildlife is looking good round my way

I HAVE seen my first dragonfly of the year in my garden in Emmer Green. It was whizzing around and about with such speed and dexterity ...

Warbler’s marvellous melody encapsulated beautiful landscape

I HAVE read in the press that going for regular walks in the countryside is of great benefit to mental health. I’m sure it is. I’m out ...

Follow @henleystandard

David throws birthday party for his 60-year-old tractor

THERE are many fans of vintage vehicles in this area but one man has taken his interest to another level. David Keeley, from ...

Ten years ago...

A WOMAN says she has been made a prisoner in her own home by rats. Barbara Fenn is refusing to use her back garden in The Close, ...

Hidden Henley

THIS must be one of Henley’s most hidden places since all that passers-by can see is the fine embellishments at the entrance gates. ...

Twenty five years ago...

PLANS for a Sainsbury’s store and housing at Caversham Lakes have hit the parish of Eye and Dunsden. Still reeling from news of ...

More News:

Historic wall demolished unlawfully for filming of Charlize Theron thriller

PART of an historic wall was demolished unlawfully during filming of a new action thriller featuring a Hollywood star. The filming of The Old Guard, which stars Charlize Theron ... [more]

Chocolate shop wins award for original flavoured treat

A CHOCOLATE shop in Watlington has been honoured in the Great Taste Awards for the fourth time. TuTu Delicious in High Street was awarded three stars for its salted liquorice ... [more]

Young vandals apologise after being caught on camera

A GANG of youths was captured on CCTV vandalising a house in Sonning Common. Police said windows were smashed during the incident last month but no arrests had been made. The six ... [more]

Election high alert

DOES John Howell know something we don’t? A Goring resident says the Henley MP was out canvassing on doorsteps in the village earlier this month. My source says: “He said he is ... [more]