Monthly Archives: September 2026

CDWS Annual Golf Day and Lunch

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The Annual Golf Day was held at Oakland Park Golf Club on Friday 11th September.

We had eight members playing, which enabled us to make two teams for a Texas
Scramble. Two were new members, Geraint and Maggie Parry, who are enthusiastic and regular players at their local golf club in Chorleywood. They are a welcome addition to our roster of players. It was also a pleasure to see Pam Britton back in action after a long awaited hip operation earlier this year. Last year Pam needed a buggy, but this year she took the course in her stride.

Some marital rivalry was introduced to the competition by careful team selection. The married couples were split up and allocated one to each of the opposing teams. As can be seen from this picture Rob Britton was very pleased that Pam had not gained bragging rights!

The course was in excellent condition considering the damage done by the long period of dry weather. The fairways were back to being green and the greens themselves, having just been freshly cut, were fast and true.

Both teams set off in the sunshine and had a very enjoyable time using all their golfing skills and guile. Every hole was completed by selecting the best of the four balls they played for every shot until the ball was in the hole.

Considering the range of handicaps and ages in each team it was impossible to predict the winners so when the result was announced in the club house we were amazed to discover that both teams had exactly the same score, four shots over the par for the
course!!

Well played everyone.

After the golf, seven more members joined the players for a two
course lunch of seared salmon with beurre blanc sauce follow by
apple tart and custard.

An enjoyable time was had by all.

Colin Thomas

The Tempest at the Vache

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Vache Baroque Report

On Sunday 6th October a group of 14 of us went to a (semi) Opera at The Vache, an outing suggested and arranged by Colin Thomas.

This was an event that I had not heard of before, and we were very lucky with the weather, it being a very pleasantly warm (and dry) evening.

It was held at the Vache Estate, a grand manor with extensive grounds in Chalfont St Giles, which apparently dates back to the Doomsday Book.

The grounds were open at 3pm and we all arrived in dribs and drabs between 3 and 5:30, meeting at a table we had booked in the refreshments tent. People brought their own picnics, varying in scale from sandwiches and crisps, to a three course meal with tablecloth and candelabra!

The performance started at 5:30 and featured an ensemble of musicians playing instruments from the 17th century together with an acting troupe called ‘Out of Chaos’.

The Vache Baroque, was formed in 2020 to promote music of the baroque period, and the instruments they played included several that I had not come across before including Bass Recorders, a Bass Violin, a Viola da gamba (like a cello),  a Violone (like a double bass) and a Theorbo (an instrument like a lute but with an enormously long neck).

They performed a musical version of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ in a lovely setting of a marquee with a backdrop of a lake and woodland, playing music from the baroque period by Henry Purcell, Matthew Locke, Pelham Humfrey, and others adapted from a late-17th-century version of The Tempest.

The singers were excellent, especially the female soprano who played Ariel (a few of the male roles were played by women).

The performance ended at 9pm, and we all drove the short distance home.

What a magical evening!

Thanks to Colin for arranging the event.

 

There are also some more photos on our 2026 Photo gallery