ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO — 25 AUGUST 1893

WORKHOUSE TREAT

On Tuesday the inmates of the Andover Workhouse had their annual summer treat in Enham Park, which Mrs.Earle, with her usual kindness, had placed at their disposal.

They were conveyed there in waggons supplied by Mr.C.Herbert, Mr.J.Tilbury, and Mrs.Morrant, and with the Andover band in attendance, had an enjoyable ride. Arrived at the park they were quickly supplied with a substantial dinner of ham, beef, salads, &c., with an allowance of beer and mineral waters, and, we need hardly say, they enjoyed the repast to the full. After dinner amusements were provided for those who could take part in them, such as cricket and other games, in addition to Mr.Layton’s roundabouts and Mr.Rolfe’s swings. Up to about 3.30 the weather was beautifully fine, and then there suddenly descended a heavy downpour of rain, which quickly drove the pleasure seekers to the shelter of the tent. It proved of only short duration, and, the storm over, tea was partaken of, by which time several ladies in the locality arrived to assist in the entertainment of the poor people. After tea the band played, and the amusements were resumed until dusk.

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO — 23 AUGUST 1918

BOWLING MATCH

On Saturday the Andover Bowling Club paid a visit to Basingstoke, and a very close game resulted. The home green was not a first class one like that at Andover it had been converted from a tennis lawn and ditched at either end. Proved a difficult ground for strangers, but the visitors made a good show after finding some of the little runnels and hills. The scores were: Andover (1), Page, Bingham, Burden, Crang, 19; (2), Pond, Humber, Bellamy, Phillips, 15; (3), Sims, Holmes, Jewell, Kendall, 12; total 46.

Basingstoke: (1), Tanner, Hard Webber, Parnell, 22; (2), Hortoff, Hoswell, Mooney, Slight, 18; (3), Waterman, Kimber, Townsend, Knight, 14; total 54. The home team had ready a very acceptable tea in the bandstand, provided by their ladies, and although the rain tried to stop the game on two occasions the ground dried very quickly. The visit and result should give the Andover team confidence in making an even better show in the return match.

SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO — 27 AUGUST 1943

CHILBOLTON — NOVEL BEE

A nettling bee was held at St.Michael’s Cottage, the home of Mr.and Mrs.Barrett, on Thursday evening. The purpose of this party was to strip and pack the large quantity of nettles which had been collected and dried at home by the people of Chilbolton in response to the Government’s appeal. About 40 workers were present, of all ages, down to quite small children, and a huge pile of plants were shredded yielding some 75lbs. of leaves, which is a real contribution towards the war effort. Refreshments were served, and the bee (the first of its kind ever held in the village) was voted a great success, as it so well combined pleasure with profit.

FIFTY YEARS AGO — 23 AUGUST 1968

CINEMA’S NEW POLICY

As from next Monday, the Savoy Cinema, Andover, will be adopting a new policy of “separate performances only.”

This will mean that the film will be shown only twice daily and that the house will be completely cleared between showings.

The manager, Mr.R.D.Hawken, told the “Advertiser” yesterday: “This has been tried by one or two of the smaller circuits in the country and has proved very successful. Now we are hoping that the people of Andover will respond accordingly.”

The approximate times of starting will be 2 p.m. – 2.15 p.m. and 7 p.m. – 7.30 p.m. The doors will open half-an-hour before each performance starts.

The performances will end in the evening between 10.15 and 10.30, to enable people to catch buses, especially those people who live on the new estates in Andover.

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO — 27 AUGUST 1993

YOUNG GYMNASTS TRY RUSSIAN WORK ETHIC

Intensive training with a top Russian coach gave two young Andover gymnasts a real taste of the dedication needed to reach the highest level.

Tina Piper, aged 14, and 10-year-old Zoe Lake, recently returned from the Moscow Dynamo Training Centre, which claims to be the largest gymnastic centre in Europe.

For the first time in their careers, they experienced top level coaching which included very long hours.

At home they are used [sic] to just 13 hours training a week but in Moscow they had to endure full-time training of 35 hours a week.

TEN YEARS AGO — 22 AUGUST 2008

AIRFIELD PLANS RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL

Planning officers are recommending permission for a controversial business park, including the so called Tesco megashed, on the former Andover Airfield — despite a storm of protest.

The application by developers Goodman includes business, storage and distribution units, hotel and community building, as well as the megashed, and is now recommended for approval.

The STOP! Alliance last week submitted a petition with more than 5,000 signatures against the proposal and more than 2,300 letters of objection have been received by Test Valley Borough Council – with just 12 letters of support. A total of 18 parish and town councils have objected and two have expressed concerns.