Have
you ever sat on a bench in a public place and wondered how it got
there? Our Benchmarks project, funded by West Wight Landscape
Partnership, involves us in finding, researching and writing about the
commemorative benches of West Wight. 
What
do a fisherman, an Admiral, a yachtsman and a ferry man have in common?
Benches, of course! On May 8th Shore Women led the Yarmouth
Sit Down Walk. We're repeating the walk again next year in
the Isle of Wight Walking Festival in May. 
The Island
Voices
anthology contains entries from the Island Voices Poetry Competition
which celebrated the centenary of the Poetry Society in 2009.
The
competition judge was Gillian Allnutt and the anthology is co-edited by
Shore Woman Camilla Lambert. Several of us have poems in Island
Voices, including Pat Murgatroyd's prize-winning West Wight
poem The Coastguard's Wife.
Some of the Shore Women at our Beach Hut day in Sandown. From left, Pat , Kate, Shelley, Felicity, Joan.
What's current and coming up
| News | Congratulations to Shore Woman Felicity Fair
Thompson, who got married on September 10th to Mr. Hugh Griffiths. We
all enjoyed the wedding and the party. We wish them much happiness. At her birthday party in June, Joan Waddington unwittingly launched her poetry collection Beneath the Passage of a Barn Owl's Wings. The book has delighted all who have seen it, not only because of the spirited poems but because of Joan's amazing photograph on the cover. Our autumn picnic supper at Dimbola was a great success. After the reading of Benchmarks we enjoyed a convivial atmosphere and lovely supper in the Dimbola cafe. Many thanks to all who attended, and to the organiser, Marri Carmichael. In 2012 we'll be reading from our Benchmarks book at Headen Hill WI (February 6), Binstead WI (June 13th) and at the Yarmouth River Club on February 9th. Irex will rise again for a reading at The Island Sailing Club on January 31st. |
| Churchyard Tales - a Duel |
We
were invited by the Friends of St. Mary's Church in Cowes to write a
Churchyard Tale about the gravestone of John Sutton, age 22, who was
killed in a duel in December 1817. We performed our poems at St. Mary's
in October, along with other writers and musicians with their own
churchyard tales to tell. We have now printed the poems and some of our
research evidence in a booklet called Poems on the Duel Between John Sutton and Major Orlando Lockyer. The booklet is available at St. Mary's Church, or from Shore Women. It's a story you won't forget! |
| Benchmarks |
Our Poetry Bench is a beautiful solid oak bench made on
the island. It is sited near the Needles Old
Battery, looking out over Alum Bay. Many thanks to the National Trust
for giving us this fabulous site. 
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| Island Voices |
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Rosetta Cottage |
Where Jennie met Randolph . . . Once again our winter
week-end
away will be at Rosetta
Cottagein
Cowes. This will be our third visit to Rosetta, a
National Trust property where
Winston Churchill's parents met and got engaged. Our guests this year
come from the Vane Women writing and performance group in Darlington.
We last worked with them ten years ago and very much look forward to a
busy week-end of writing, reading and sharing ideas. Eating, drinking,
and walking along the beach might come into it as well . . . |
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The Irex Project |
 The Wreck of the Irex: Riddles
of the Sea
- The Irex shipwreck in Scratchell's Bay in 1890 is a fascinating story
which we have presented through poetry and performance across the Isle
of Wight. The Irex DVD is available through this site. It shows the
live performance of the poems at Dimbola Lodge, Freshwater, and
includes all characters in costume and some very clever screen editing.
More poems and pictures about the Irex... |
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