It was our good fortune to enjoy a dry and mild day for our Annual Golf event at Oakland Park Golf Club. A perfect day for golf, though the same adjective would not accurately describe the golf played.
Three teams of three competed in a “Texas Scramble”. In this special format a team sets off with each player taking a shot. One of the shots is chosen and it is from the location of that chosen ball that each player’s next shot is taken. The team proceeds in this way until a ball is holed. Another detail is that the team must select at least 5 shots from the tee played by each team member.
Each team included a member of Oakland Golf Club, who would be familiar with the course. Rob Britton led the first team to tee off, accompanied by Rob Brett and Ray Brown. The latter was a last minute replacement for the injured Brian Evans, but was an eminently well-qualified substitute as his wife is Welsh. Despite sharing the same initials this team did not always share the same opinion when trying to choose their “best” shot. Perhaps a consequence of putting two retired legal eagles in the same team.
The second team consisted of Pam Britton accompanied by Gwyndaf John and John 
Whitworth, and the third saw Colin Thomas partnered by Pat Whitworth and Alun McCarthy.
The “best shot” format ensures that players of all standards contribute to the team result, with wayward shots forgotten – mostly! The team members bond together in their collective effort, and it is good fun.
By the end we were all thankful for and appreciative of our playing partners’ efforts, as one example shows. From the first tee John hit his drive off into the rough on the right, Gwyndaf’s ball soared high and was lost in the shrubbery to the left. Fortunately, for the first but not the last time during the round, Pam stepped up and struck her drive sweetly down the middle of the fairway.
The end result was very close indeed. Though there were no birdies recorded, there were plenty of pars recorded on all the scorecards. In the end Pam, John and Gwyndaf scraped home as the winners. They took 81 strokes, just one stroke less than the two Robs’ and Ray. Another three behind were Colin, Pat and Alun.
After the golf the players were joined by other members of the Society for a splendid two course lunch. Among those attending were Elan and Robin Preston-Whyte who had travelled over from Egham. A later than usual start to the golf meant a late sitting for the meal, so thanks are due to all the non-playing guests for their patience.
Prizes were awarded to the winning team, and Gwyndaf and Rob were thanked for arranging the event.
Gwyndaf John
On Thursday 19th September, a group of 15 members met at10:00am on Windsor Bridge for a walk around Windsor and Eton.
David & Gwyndaf had done their homework and planned a walk that was to take in sights of Windsor that many of us had not seen before. The walk was loosely based on The Queen’s Walkway and a series of 63 of the town’s attractions, but we were to cover only the sights in the centre of the town.
There were many unusual attractions: the death warrant for Charles I, a game of hopscotch based on monarchs connected with Windsor and the parish church of St John the Baptist which held an 18th century picture of the last supper, a wonderful carved altar rail by Grinling Gibbons and the royal pew with two grand wooden thrones.
And so to the Sunday of the Lunch. At noon the elements decided to make their contribution – another downpour. Come one o’clock some 40 determined guests had arrived – looking dressed for a January walk in the Chilterns – vests included – so I was told by many of the ladies . However, then – the sun decided to shine on proceedings.
UK staff used to use Walther PPK pistols, but changed to bulkier Smith & Wesson revolvers after an incident when the automatic pistol jammed. Lloyd described the care and maintenance of the weapons and the firing practise that they undertook.
First we visited the new church which was built in Victorian times (1867), to house the growing population of the village. Unusually for a Victorian church, it was built in the ‘Arts and Crafts’ style rather than gothic. The church bell was taken from the old church and is said to date from about 1290.
Trish then took us on a path leading behind the new church to a much smaller building. This dated back to about 1220, built by the Cistercian monks at Missenden Abbey on a site of an older wooden church. One of the first things that we noticed were the old sun dials on the exterior wall. These were Mass Clocks, for telling the time for mass.
Inside there were traces of the medieval wall Doom painting showing the weighing of souls and another depicting St
Christopher.
figures of St Mary and St John. Below that, the main window depicts three puritans including John Hampden in the centre and Oliver Cromwell to his left. This window was originally meant to be for the church in Little Hampden, but was rejected as it contained the figure of Cromwell.
We then walked through the woods, which were carpeted with wild garlic and their aroma filled the air. Some of our walkers took the opportunity to gather leaves as they can make a very good pesto. Luckily, it had not been raining recently so the path was not very muddy.
As The Lee is quite high up, there are no streams and the village used to rely on a pond for its water. In 1897, in the year of Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee, a well was dug to provide clean water. This was quite a task, as the well is 365 feet deep, 4 foot six inches wide, and the workers had to rely on candles for their light and a blacksmith’s bellows to provide ventilation. It was commissioned by Sir Arthur Liberty and built by Liberty’s craftsmen.
Martin Sheen was wonderful as Nye, appearing in all the scenes dressed in his hospital pyjamas and seemingly bewildered as each scene unfolded before him in random order, as a schoolboy with a stutter, then his fights with Winston Churchill, his open marriage relationship with Jennie Lee and the death of his father (a Welsh miner). Finally he remembers his creation of the National Health Service against very high odds, only winning against the doctor’s opposition by promising them to make them the highest paid professionals in the country (“Filling their mouths with gold”).
The staging was quite clever, the green curtains reminding one of those in a hospital and also acting as the green seats of the House of Commons, whilst hospital beds were transformed into lobby entrances during the parliamentary scenes.
We found our coach at 5:15 and our driver fought his way through the rush hour traffic to get us back to Gerrards Cross by about 6:30 – well behind those who had travelled by train!
All 50 guests were greeted with a glass of bubbly or soft drink – as appropriate. The lounge provided an excellent space to catch up with old friends and indeed some guests from the principality – Whitland to be precise. I was delighted to meet with the brother of one of my classmates at Narberth Grammar School. Our mutual aquaintances were numerous; a joyful start to the evening.
As usual Gerrards Cross Club did us proud with a very good 3 course meal; the leek and potato soup was so good I thought my mum must have had a hand in it. There were also many compliments directed at the sewin ( sea trout) – main course as well as the suitable lamb dish. The staff looked after us well and added to the friendly ambience of the evening.
Chairman Gwyndaf John opened proceedings and handed over to Kate Picton to give an update on Jonathan Pegler’s progress in hospital. We all wished him a speedy recovery
Colin’s quiz had a definite Welsh theme with rounds on…… Welsh Celebs, Welsh Geography and Welsh History.
The final scores were: