Regulars

Ordinary-looking woodland full of raspberries and edible fungi

AFTER two days of heavy rain, I woke up to an unexpectedly bright but windy day on Friday morning. It was the last day of November and very mild. I called my friend Dave Kenny and we decided to visit one of our most loved woodlands. Gutteridge’s Wood...

Following a delightful Thames tributary that’s teeming with wildlife

THE Berry Brook is an enchanting and little-known stream, a tributary of the Thames that flows from Lower Caversham to meet our world-famous river at Hallsmead Ait (a river island or eyot) just short of Shiplake College. From its humble beginnings, it...

Birds, butterflies and bees... churchyard is an oasis for wildlife

THE morning is bright and sunny and I think how lucky I have been this year as I prepare to go for a walk. Only once in the summer have I had to take shelter from a brief shower. Stepping outside, my attention is drawn to a red admiral butterfly...

A truly fabulous wood but why is it called ‘famous’?

WHAT’S in a name? It’s a great question. Some of us try to decipher something about our origins. How does our surname or birthplace locate us in space and time? More often than not the answer is simple. A former trade, the name of a town or village,...

Lane is natural sanctuary from noise and pollution of modern world

THERE is nothing like an ancient and old hollow lane to bring the past into the present. Today we may walk along them without much thought as to their age and purpose. Of course, many have become roads but one only has to look at any map, old or...

Kenneth Grahame was right, you can’t beat a day on the water

AS Kenneth Grahame wrote in The Wind in the Willows, “There is nothing — absolutely nothing — half so much worth doing than simply ...

Neighbouring woods remind me there’s no place like home

AS I nurse a broken shoulder, I reminisce about all the wild places that I have experienced so far in life. Since childhood, and in ...

Woodland treasure that’s well worth a visit whatever the weather

STARING out of a window the other morning, I wondered whether the rain would ever stop as I wanted to get out and explore. Luckly, it ...

Drifting with our backs to the future

HOW and when will history, the human story, end? Thoughtful people in every generation have asked that question. The big questions ...

A hundred years ago...

ONE of the first prisoners of war from Henley to be released is Rifleman Frank Parslow, attached to the 6th London Regiment. He is a ...

Fifty years ago...

FOR a few minutes on Tuesday, a fierce struggle took place between policemen and an 18-year-old youth who attempted to make a break ...

Twenty five years ago...

GALES lashed the country on Wednesday night and brought down trees all over Henley. Winds of up to 63mph left thousands of homes in ...

Different degrees

IT may seem odd to have a 22 degree difference between the minimum and maximum temperatures in one month but in November this is not ...

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Council cleans up

HATS off to Henley town clerk Janet Wheeler and her staff who worked hard at the town’s Christmas Festival on Friday. They were out in ...

Taxi drivers: thoughtless or caring?

Sir, — How is it that every day, at least one of Henley Taxis’ vehicles can be found parked on double yellow lines in Gravel Hill? In ...

Your letters...

Unappealing town centre Sir, — I have lived in Station Road, Henley, for the last 28 years. My husband and I walk into town every day ...

Ten years ago...

PLANS to ban parking in 16 Henley roads have been met with fierce opposition from businesses, residents and workers. They claim there ...

More News:

Football parking extension

A NEW parking area for junior football teams in Wargrave is set to be extended just weeks after it was introduced. The temporary parking zone off Recreation Road is used by ... [more]

New £22,000 learning hub opened at junior school

A NEW learning hub has been opened at Robert Piggott Junior School in Wargrave. The room has been formed by combining and refurbishing the library and IT suite at a cost of £22,... [more]

Fears over funding

A COUNCILLOR is concerned about the future funding of Watlington’s children’s centre. The centre was awarded a £30,000 start-up grant over three years by Oxfordshire County ... [more]

Taylor quick off the mark at Watlington 10km race

MORE than 80 people took part in a ninth edition of a winter race in countryside near Watlington on Sunday. The Watlington 10K is organised by the Fat Fox Inn in the town and runs ... [more]