CH Reunion 2011

This year's reunion will be held on Saturday 2nd July 2011, with the picnic on top of the hill beginning at 1 pm.

Good afternoon ...

Well, good afternoon all. My apologies for the long interval on the blog. I rather ran out of steam after 18 months of continuous posting. The resumption of the blog features this rather strange picture from Alan Ford from the 1991 season: as he says "Kate Wescomb appears to be blowing up an inflatable Richard Ozanne." Alan must have waited hours in his hide on top of the photographic tower to capture the moment to perfection.

I have emailed everyone on the mailing list today with the revised date for the reunion this year: the picnic will be Saturday 24th July. My apologies for having to change the date at relatively short notice: the clash with the Fairford Airshow meant that those of us coming from afar were unable to find accommodation in the Crickley vicinity on the previous weekend.

Squeal Pig ...

Malc White sends the following intriguing piece of intelligence: "Just a quick note to report that the Cheeserollers pub in Shurdington is now selling a cider called Squealy Pig. Now I don't know if Squeal Pig as used by Mr Parry (and referring to Woodpecker Cider if I remember correctly[may well have been: or otherwise GL cider? Ed.]) is an original or whether it's a local term for cider but it struck me as a coincidence that a pub which was used by diggers occasionally is selling a cider described so eloquently by one of them."

Strange indeed, and best illustrated by a photo of JP clasping a glass, most probably of Squeal(y) Pig, at the 2009 reunion picnic, courtesy of Terry Courtney. Also in view, Dr Phillpotts & Andrew Powell.

A bit bedraggled ...

Apologies for the recent lack of postings: C-H-M has been mildly poorly as well as being frantically busy at the cookery school and cooking dinners on the odd evening for clients, which has left me short on energy and inspiration though I am now on the mend. Feeling slightly bedraggled was probably what made me select this picture from Anna's collection of the assembled diggers sheltering from a bit of a downpour. I think I can spot Kathy Scott, Anna Behan, Elsa Charlot and Dr Phillpotts.

A normal evening at the Air Balloon ...

From Anna Behan's collection, an evening in garden of the 'Air Balloon' in 1978 or thereabouts: Dr Phillpotts, C-H-M beginning his entry for that night's gurning competition, Anna turning away in horror being comforted by Ollie Crick, Ranging Rod & Mike Webb looking on and Mike Taylor watching the unknown photographer. It is surprising that Flt Lt Southwood is not in the frame but perhaps the photographer was he, unless he was getting the next round in. It looks as though the lights of the bar, small as it was in those days, are in the background.

C-H-M has, somewhat unromantically for the time of year, been abed with a gastric bug (- what other kind would a student of cookery get?), which is why postings have been lacking, for which my apologies. Perhaps Bacillus cereus was the culprit or indeed Clostridium perfringens. Each can stalk a curry house ...

Spot the bow ties

Apologies for the recent hiatus in postings: it was largely caused by the need to plan and cook lunch for 50 in 3.5 hours and recover from the (mainly splendid) experience. On a food theme, here's a 1977 shot of the lunch with tablecloths & waitress service that was enjoyed by Messrs. Irvine, Howell, Glaskin & Roberts. Here they are in mid-trough snapped by Anna Behan. Love the bow ties.

Unprepossessing heaven

It may not have been a thing of beauty, but to a Crickley digger at the end of a long, hot, hard-labouring day, the sight of the Ablutions block in the early evening was welcome together with the knowledge that soon you could scrub away the grime of the day. Even a wash in a basin was bliss, let alone the heaven of a shower on the days when it was your turn to have one. From Mike Sims 2004 end of Ullenwood series.

Ahem ...

Alan Ford gave this 1991 picture from the Knell/Ford Ermine Street Guard debut in Martigny in Switzerland the caption "What was I thinking?" about which, I suspect, we may not wish to have too much clarity ...

What on earth did John Parry just say?

On the stage in the mess hall at Ullenwood in 1979. Plainly, from the fact that everyone is falling about laughing JP must just have said something hilarious to Randal Motkin who clasps a ceremonial block of oolitic limestone (probably that season's 'Personality of the Year' award. Why John is wearing a crash helmet is lost in the mists. Back row, L to R, Dmitri, C-H-M, Bernard Dawson, Randal, Terry Courtney, JP. Front row, David Hole, Zoya Spivakowska, Ros Cleal and Anna Collinge.

Stop press: following a recent straw poll of Crickley veterans this year's reunion will be on the weekend of 16 to 18 July, holding the picnic on the hill on Saturday 17th. This at least gives Noakesy a chance to hotfoot it from his foreign tour just to make it in time ... I will email the usual suspects soon about the arrangements.

The conversation must have been scintillating ...

L to R: Rowena Dutton, Terry Courtney, Philip Dixon, Anna Collinge, Jane Dineen's legs. Anna was plainly so gripped by the elevated conversation during this break that she is deep in her book. From her own photo collection, probably from the 1980 season.

A picture of concentration

Dr Cleal was, I suspect, concentrating so hard on her tracing that she may well have been unaware that Eric van Dorland was taking this rather fine study of her labours in the planning hut in 1990. Update: Jane Dineen thinks this is a misidentification and so does Eric: possibly someone called Emma, he thinks & not Ros.

Getting it straight

Feeling a little jaded? Alan Ford, in 1991, shows how he straightened himself out: a couple of scaffold poles down the trouser legs does the trick. The spoil heap was to hand for a soft landing and Julie looks on in the background.

Telling stories on the barrow

Dr Cleal, hearing C-H-M's appeal for more material, has emerged from hiding, blinking into the light and very kindly sent C-H-M this picture. She writes "... at some time in the 80s, I think after your time but I may be wrong, we started going to sit on the top of Crippets long barrow in the field next to Ullenwood, usually after we'd been to the pub (strange, that). This is an occasion in 1984 and the protaganists are from left front clockwise : I'm afraid unknown (or forgotten on my part), Julian Thomas (now Professor Thomas, University of Manchester), Clive Anderson, Nicky Snashall, Clare Milroy, Julie Lancley, Simon (help - have temporarily forgotten his surname) [Figg? Ed.], self, Dave Southwood (Biggles). We certainly did this on more than one occasion and I've since looked up Crippets in the 1920s volume on Gloucestershire long barrows by the well known field archaeologist O.G.S.Crawford in which he notes that there is evidence of some antiquarian activity - well, we should have recognised that, as we were sitting with our feet in the remains of the 'dig' - but I'm not sure that did occur to us (except perhaps to Julian!). If you're putting stuff on line you can mention that Nicky (usually 'Nick' now) and I now work for the National Trust at Avebury where we recreate, as far as is possible, the ambience of the CH finds and planning huts - all we lack is Corky to keep us in order."

To which Dr Ferris muses: "Oh, the youth of today thinking they invented everything-the jet engine, alcohol, cyber-sex, the wireless, pot noodles, sitting on Crippets barrow at night etc. I remember some splendid late night, GL-fuelled,ghost-story-telling sessions on the barrow in 1976 and 1978, the latter being my opportunity to reveal my strange experience with the ghost of a miner encountered in County Durham. And I wasn't making it up." How much GL had you had when you met the miner?

Not for the pogonophobic ...

A 1991-ish study of Jim Irvine by Alan Ford: he wonders whether Jim will be cast as Thorin Oakenshield in the forthcoming hobbit movie. Can't think how that idea popped into your head, Alan.

All in a good mood

High good humour all round at the award, it would appear to Randal Motkin, of the 1979 'Mr Crickley' title. Back row, L to R, Dmitri, Terry Courtney, Julian Parker, Bernard Dawson, Dave Southwood. Middle row, Training, The Skeleton, John Parry congratulating Randal, Mike Taylor. Front row, David Hole, Zoya Spivakowska, Ros Cleal, and Anna Collinge. The Skeleton is wearing C-H-M's father's demob suit from 1945.

Dumper and buckets

Or perhaps this 1985 effort from Dr Phillpotts should be his Turner prize entry. Or is it too simple to interpret? But then again it's beyond your loyal correspondent to work out what's going on with the stratigraphy here. I may just be tired after the wine lecture and making soy braised guineafowl with shiitake mushrooms and bok choi ...

Dirt

One of Dr Phillpotts's' more inspired compositions entitled 'Dirt, buckets and limestone'. I am thinking of nominating this seminal example of late 20th century archaeo-grunge for the Turner Prize. Having examined the rules, Dr Phillpotts was young enough to qualify when he took the picture even if he would not pass muster now. Come to think of it, C-H-M himself missed that boat last week.

Dirty work

Sue Bauman (Lee Jeffs) features in this 1980-or-thereabouts photo she sent C-H-M together with Kate Domeshek (Gilbert) and Lucy Loveridge and two other C-H-M does not recognise. The filthy water of Frank Green's scrunging machine can be glimpsed under Kate's elbow. All blissfully mucky.

The bucket hut builder

Another Rebecca Chambers shot of the 1988 sequence in which other people watch Steve Vaughan constructing the hut to keep the buckets. John Gale and Joanne Milroy supervise ...

Sitting on the step ...

From Jill Hummerstone and Les Capon's collection: Dr Phillpotts and Adrian Corrigan sit upon the step of the mess hall at Ullenwood watching the world go by: the diggers are probably trotting to and fro to the dormitories and the ablutions block.

A red dragon in a ditch

Mike Taylor proudly wears a faded T shirt with the red dragon of Wales whilst posing in the bottom of the ditch of the 1979 rampart cut. Photo by Anna Behan.