Past Months

February 2010:

Dates for your diary in the coming months

APRIL - Annual Village Auction:

The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 10th April. (More details closer to the date.)

MAY/JUNE - The Great North Wales Getaway:

A 4-night break to Bodelwyddan Castle Hotel in North Wales is being organised from Monday 31st May to Friday 4th June. The hotel offers a range of activities for adults including archery, bowls, tennis and rifle shooting. Click here here for more information on the trip.

January 2010:

A Happy New Year To All

From Cesspits to Water Closets:

An interesting talk to start the New Year! Refer to the Buckden Local History Society webpage under the Societies section of the website for this talk on Wednesday 6th January.

Unity Walk:

Following on from the success of last year's Unity Walk, another walk will take place on Sunday 24th January. Start 2.30 pm from the Methodist Church. After the walk tea will be served at the church. See the Roundabout for more details.

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Whether you are a local business, society or individual, there is no charge to advertise with the Buckden Village Free Ads Service. This is a complimentary facility that is available for all in the community to use!

An advert on the Free Ads database consists of a text entry of up to 200 characters plus a contact name and telephone number. (If you are a business you can also have a separate link to your own website or webpage for a modest monthly charge.)

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

December 2009:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

From all at Buckden-Village.co.uk

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

November 2009:

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

October 2009:

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

September 2009:

Heritage Day at the Towers:

On Sunday 13th September from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm The Friends of Buckden Towers will be hosting Heritage Day at the Towers. There will be tours, teas and stalls.

Entrance free - proceeds to the Restoration Fund!

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

August 2009:

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

July 2009:

Buckden Feast Day 2009

Saturday 11^th July

Events/Stalls/Rides and Games from 1 p.m.

followed by

Village Party to celebrate the Centre's 10^th Birthday

(Tickets on sale in the office: £1 Adults and 50p children/concessions)

Shakespeare Returns to Buckden Towers:

As part of their 2009 tour, 'Theatre Set-up' will be returning to Buckden Towers on Friday 10 July to perform Shakespeare's romantic comedy 'Cymbeline'. Gates open at 6:30 pm; performance starts 7:30 pm.

Tickets are £10 (£8 concessions) and are available in advance from The Towers.

June 2009:

Robinson College Chapel Choir:

The Robinson College Chapel Choir makes another welcome return to Buckden on 20th June at 7:30 p.m. in St Mary's Church. For more information please see St Mary's Church website at www.stmarysbuckden.org.uk.

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

May 2009:

Local Artists' Charity Exhibition:

The exhibition is in aid of the Different Strokes and Headway charities and will be held at Field House, Sliver Street, Buckden on 22nd May 2:00-4:00 p.m. and on 23rd May 10:00-4:00 p.m.

Admission is £2.50, which includes coffee and cakes

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

April 2009:

Angling Society:

Full details of the Offord and Buckden Angling Society are now on the website (in the'Societies' section).

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Buckden is fortunate to have two sets of Almshouses in the village, namely South's Almshouses and the Burberry Homes. If you are interested in living in one of these apartments (or know someone who might be), please click here for further information. (Additional details can be found on the Buckden Parochial Charities' web page.)

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

March 2009:

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

February 2009:

Grand Auction:

The annual auction in aid of St Mary's Church Restoration Fund is to be held at the Buckden Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 14th February at 11:00 a.m.

If you have items that are too good to throw away, please donate them between 8:45 and 9:45 a.m. (Please no shoes, clothes, books, out-of-date computer equipment or televisions.) Viewing is between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m. The auction starts promptly at 11:00 a.m.

This is a fun event and everybody is welcome. Coffee, tea and snacks will be available throughout the sale.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

January 2009:

Annual Auction - A Date For Your Diary:

Time to Sort out the Attic? The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 14th February.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

December 2008:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

From all at Buckden-Village.co.uk

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

November 2008:

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

October 2008:

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

September 2008:

Buckden Local History Society:

The new Programme of Events for 2008-2009 can be found under the 'Societies' section.

The season starts on 3rd September with a talk by Honor Ridout who will tell the background story of the Tudor recreations at Kentwell Hall in Suffolk - the characters, the craftsmanship, the clothes and the beautiful setting of the Hall and gardens.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

August 2008:

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

July 2008:

Buckden Festival Fair 2008

Saturday 12^thJuly 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

The Festival Fair will include Andy Rogers Roadshow, Stageworks Dancers, Chris Bylett's 'Magic on the Move' and Jivenites. There will be children's games and rides, bouncy castle, balloon race, BBQ and many stalls. Refreshments from the Village Club Bar and Teashop.

See the insert in this month's Roundabout for more information.

As always we hope that you will give our village festival your full support!

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

June 2008:

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

May 2008:

Murder Mystery - A Successful Evening:

Almost 90 people turned up to watch the Murder Mystery Evening held at the Buckden Millennium Community Centre on Friday 18th April. It was a very successful and enjoyable event with just over £811 being raised for the St Mary's Church Living Stones Appeal.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

April 2008:

Murder Mystery Evening:

On Friday 18th April at 7:30 p.m. 'OARS' will present a Murder Mystery Evening at the Buckden Millennium Community Centre. Admission is £15 and includes a complimentary glass of wine and a cheese and pickle supper. There will also be a bar. Tickets from Top Banana or Mary-Anne (812220).

All proceeds from the evening will go towards the St Mary's Church Living Stones Appeal.

(Tickets are selling fast - make sure you have yours!)

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

March 2008:

A Deadly Date for your Diary!

All proceeds from the evening will go towards the St Mary's Church Living Stones Appeal.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

February 2008:

St Mary's Fundraisers Grand Auction Sale:

The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Buckden Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 9th February at 11:00 a.m.

If you have items that are too good to throw away, please donate them between 9:00 and 10:00 a.m. (Please no books, clothes or shoes.) Viewing is between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m. The auction starts promptly at 11:00 a.m.

This is a fun event and everybody is welcome. Coffee, tea and snacks will be available throughout the sale.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

January 2008:

A Happy New Year To All

A History of Buckden - Deadline For Copy:

The last date for receiving stories or photographs for the book is 31st January 2008. If you are preparing material for the book, please ensure that the Local History Society is made aware in advance of this date. (Click here here for more information on the book.)

If you would like to order a copy when ready, send an email with your contact details to history@buckden-village.co.uk and we will notify you as soon as it has been published. (However, please note that this may be several months from now.)

Annual Auction - A Date For Your Diary:

The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 9th February.

Over 60 and looking for somewhere to live?

Free Advertising on the Buckden Village Website:

Click the 'Free Adverts' button for more information.

December 2007:

Buckden 2007 Christmas Lights

and

Christmas Fayre

Sunday 9^th December 3:00-6:00 pm

3:00-6:00 pm - Buckden School

Christmas Market; Father Christmas' Grotto; Children's Stalls; Raffle;
Refreshments; Fairground Rides; Dancing by Stageworks (5:20 pm);
BBQ and Bar (4:30-6:00 pm);

5:00 pm - Outside Buckden School

Carol Singing by Buckden School Choir

The switching on of the Village Christmas Lights

As mentioned several months ago, a new book is to be written on the history of the village. Have you something to contribute? Perhaps a relevant anecdote or photograph? If so, the Local History Society would like to hear from you. Please click here here for more information.

If you would like to order a copy of the book when ready, send an email with your contact details to history@buckden-village.co.uk and we will notify as soon as it has been published. (However, please note that this may be several months from now.)

Come and join in the 'Sounds Spectacular' at St Mary's Church on Saturday 6th October.

There will be various events throughout the day including Jazz, Mozart, poetry, songs from musicals and much, much more.

Starting at 10:00 a.m. the event continues throughout the day finishing with the Grand Finale from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

As mentioned last month and several months ago, a new book is to be written on the history of the village. Have you something to contribute? Perhaps a relevant anecdote or photograph? If so, the Local History Society would like to hear from you. Please click here here for more information.

Don't forget the Buckden Feast Week 2007, which starts with Bingo in the Village Hall at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday 1st July. The Festival Fair is from 1:00 p.m. on Saturday 7th. See the insert in June's Roundabout and the update sheet in this month's Roundabout for more information.

Did you know that The National Blood Service hold regular sessions in the area? They will be in St Neots on Wednesday July 4; St Ives on Tuesday July 17; Huntingdon on Thursday July 19 and Wednesday July 25. (The National Blood service will next be in Buckden on Monday, November 5.)

For more information please visit the National Blood Service's website at www.blood.co.uk and search on 'Buckden, St Neots' under the 'Where to donate' section.

Did you know that The National Blood Service hold regular sessions in Buckden? The next is on the 18th June at the Millennium Community Centre, 13:00 to 15:30 and 16:30 to 19:00.

For more information please visit the National Blood Service's website at www.blood.co.uk and search on 'Buckden, St Neots' under the 'Where to donate' section. (If you cannot make the 18th then there are a number of sessions being held throughout the summer in Huntingdon, St Neots and other nearby locations.)

As mentioned a few months ago, a new book is to be written on the history of the village. Have you something to contribute? Perhaps a relevant anecdote or photograph? If so, the Local History Society would like to hear from you. Please click here here for more information.

Fancy being on television? Then you'll probably be interested in reading this notice recently received from RDF Media, a company that specialises in producing quality television programmes.

The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 3rd February. For more information please click here.

Are you at all concerned about what is happening to Huntingdonshire? (For example, Hinchingbrooke Hospital.) Then check out this new local site www.preservehuntingdonshire.org.uk.

If you would like to publish a short article on the site about a past or present aspect of Huntingdonshire life, then email the details and we will forward them onto our friends at Preserve Huntingdonshire.

Buckden residents Brian and Pat King have finally reached Australia after their epic overland trek started in April 2006.

With their fellow travelling colleagues they journeyed overland in a converted Belgium tipper lorry through Europe, the Middle East and Asia. They had many adventures en route.

Read an account of Pat and Brian's trip on our travel blog on the Information page

No time to visit the hairdressers? Then give Julie a call at Barnets and Bonnets on 01480 812590 / 07899 845355. Julie will cut your hair anywhere you like, whether it is in your garden, conservatory or living room.

See Barnets and Bonnets' new webpage on the Shopes and Businesses section of the website for more information.

We welcome Clint Thomas-Morgan to the village website. As well as plumbing, Clint is experienced with tiling and small building works. See Clint's webpage for more information. (Under Shops and Businesses.)

Are you at all concerned about what is happening to Huntingdonshire? (For example, Hinchingbrooke Hospital.) Then check out this new local site www.preservehuntingdonshire.org.uk.

Visit Father Christmas in his grotto at the George Hotel between 3pm and 5pm
(Admission 50p)

Christmas is fast approaching and you don't have time to visit the hairdressers? Then give Julie a call at Barnets and Bonnets on 01480 812590 / 07899 845355. Julie will cut your hair anywhere you like, whether it is in your garden, conservatory or living room.

See Barnets and Bonnets' new webpage on the Shopes and Businesses section of the website for more information.

Are you at all concerned about what is happening to Huntingdonshire? (For example, Hinchingbrooke Hospital.) Then check out this new local site www.preservehuntingdonshire.org.uk.

Buckden residents Pat and Brian King have now reached Malaysia on their overland journey to Australia. Follow Pat and Brian's continuing adventures on our travel blog. (See the Information page.)

A new book is to be written on the history of the village. Have you something to contribute? Perhaps a relevant anecdote or photograph? If so, the Local History Society requires details by the end of November 2006. Please click click here here for more information.

Are you at all concerned about what is happening to Huntingdonshire? (For example, Hinchingbrooke Hospital.) Then check out this new local site www.preservehuntingdonshire.org.uk.

Buckden and Little Paxton Surgeries now have a new site that contains a great deal of useful information. See 'Surgery' on the Community page.

Are you at all concerned about what impact the new A14 will have on the village and surrounding area? If so, we urge you to click here and read the "A14 Latest News" published by the Buckden Parish Council.

(If you would like to comment on this document, then either send an e-mail to the council at buckdenclerk@btconnect.com, or complete the feedback form at the foot of this screen (with a subject of A14) and we will forward your comments to the parish council.)

Buckden residents Pat and Brian King are over two-thirds the way through there overland journey to Australia. Follow their continuing adventures on our travel blog. (See the Information page.)

If you us send an e-mail please note that, because of our other work commitments, it may take us several days to respond. However, we do aim to reply to every e-mail we receive. So, if you haven't heard from us in a week or so, please resend your e-mail. Your original (or our reply) may have got lost in the World Wide Web!

Buckden and Little Paxton Surgeries now have a new site that contains a great deal of useful information. See 'Surgery' on the Community page.

Buckden residents Pat and Brian King are over two-thirds the way through there overland journey to Australia. Follow their continuing adventures on our travel blog. (See the Information page.)

The new Programme of Events for 2006-2007 can be found under the 'Societies' section.

The season starts on 6th September with a talk by John Goldsmith, Curator of the Cromwell Museum in Huntingdon. The subject of the talk is 'Cromwell in Statues and Stained Glass'.

Simple Origins is a new local enterprise that specialises in the manufacture of high-quality skin care products made from natural ingredients. Their range includes:

Follow the continuing adventures of Buckden residents Pat and Brian King on our 'travel blog' as they continue their overland journey through the Middle East. This month we've added a number of photographs sent through by Pat and Brian. (See the Information page.)

Welcome to Simple Origins, a new local enterprise that specialises in the manufacture of high-quality skin care products made from natural ingredients. Their range includes:

Follow the continuing adventures of Buckden residents Pat and Brian King on our 'travel blog' as they continue their overland journey through the Middle East. (See the Information page.)

Lost your guide to what's on during the Buckden Village Feast Week? Don't worry, just click here for the Feast Week 2006 programme (pdf format). As always we hope that you will give our village festival your full support!

Welcome to Simple Origins, a new local enterprise that specialises in the manufacture of high-quality skin care products made from natural ingredients. Their range includes:

Interested in making wine or beer? Then go along to one of the Buckden Wine and Beermakers meetings held at the Scout Hut in Lucks Lane on the 4th Thursday of the month, starting at 8 p.m.

Full details of the Buckden Wine and Beermakers Society can be found on their new webpage under 'Societies'.

Follow the continuing adventures of Buckden residents Pat and Brian King as they continue their overland journey to Australia on our 'travel blog' on the Information page

Did you know that Buckden has a thriving wine and beer making society? They would like to expand and are looking for new members. Interested? If so, then go to the Buckden Wine and Beermakers Society's new web page for more information. (Under 'Societies'.)

Buckden residents Pat and Brian King are now almost two months into their overland trip to Australia in a converted Belgium tipper lorry. In that time they have travelled through a number of countries including France, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey.

Follow their journey and adventures (they've already had quite a few) through our travel blog on the Information page .

This year's feast week starts on Friday 30th June and runs until Saturday 8th July. There is much to do! Click here for a copy of the programme in pdf format (Adobe Acrobat required)

On Saturday 8th April intrepid Buckden residents Pat and Brian King set off on a journey of a lifetime. With others they are travelling overland to Australia in a converted Belgium tipper lorry!

They will be journeying through Europe, the Middle East and Asia over a period of 28 weeks until they reach their destination. No luxury overnight accommodation for Pat and Brian, for most of their trip they will be sleeping in a tent by the lorry!

Follow their journey through our travel blog (travelogue) on the Information page. Pat and Brian will be updating the blog as and when they can find Internet access on their epic trip.

Good Friday Open Air Service: Buckden Joint Churches will be holding an open air service on Good Friday. For more information please click here.

Buckden Pharmacy: The village's new pharmacy opens on the 1st March. Please note that Buckden Surgery patients do not need to wait until the 1st May to obtain their prescriptions from the pharmacy.

Repeat prescriptions - let the pharmacist know your repeat prescription as soon as possible so that your medicine can be ordered and kept in stock.

Murder Mystery Evening: The Living Stones Player will present Murder at Westbury Manor at the Buckden Millennium Community Centre on Friday 3rd March. Admission is £15 and includes a 3-course dinner with coffee. There will also be a bar. To find out more about this fun evening please click here.

The Aragon Singers: Information on Buckden's Aragon Singers and a link to the choral society's website can be found under the 'Societies' section.

Public Auction:The annual auction held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 11th February was a great success and raised in excess of £800 for the upkeep of St Mary's Church.

Public Auction: The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 11th February. For more information please click here.

Buckden Pharmacy: The village's new pharmacy will be opening on the 1st March. Please note that Buckden Surgery patients do not need to wait until the 1st May to obtain their prescriptions from the pharmacy. (Repeat prescriptions - let the pharmacist know your repeat prescription as soon as possible so that your medicine can be ordered and kept in stock.)

Auction: The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 11th February. For more information please click here.

How do you turn a Village into a Town? This is the question posed by the Buckden-Village Preservation Group. Click here to find out what they mean. (As you read, note the significance of Tuesday 8th November.)

Buckden's Living Stones Appeal - a date for your diary: The next event for the appeal is a wine tasting evening with cheese on Thursday, 24 November at 7.30 p.m. at Buckden Marina.

Wine expert Shane Fazackerley from Charles Wells will be on hand to explain and describe the wines. Tickets are available from the reception at Buckden Marina. The price is £10.95 which, of course, includes the wine drunk on the night (and the cheese!). Wine ordered on the night will be delivered in time for Christmas.

(The appeal is for funding to build an extension and improve facilities in St Mary's the Parish Church of Buckden.)

Trip to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden: The WI have a few seats available for their trip to see The Nutcracker at The Royal Opera House Covent Garden on Monday 2nd January 2006. The cost is £35 a person, which includes the coach.

Note that the seats are up high and may have restricted view. (We had the same seats last year and it was fine.)

We will leave the Methodist Hall at 4pm so that we have time for a meal before the 7.30 performance.

Free Web Pages: You may not be aware that if you run a club or society in the village you can advertise for free on the Buckden Village Website. We'll provide you with a free web page that either you can update yourself via your browser or we'll update for you.

Buckden Local History Society: BLHS's Programme of Events for 2005-2006 can be found on their webpage. This month there will be a talk by Gordon Townsend on the 'History of the Fire Service'. Click here for more information.

Knitting Accessories: Exquisite handmade wooden knitting needles and wooden crochet hooks are available from Knitting UK, the latest addition to local businesses that has been added to the site.

If you are interested in knitting, then please visit their website at www.knittinguk.com.

Land investment opportunity - too good to be true? You may have seen land around Buckden being offered for sale as building plots, in particular land at the back of Perry Road / Great North Road. Please be aware that it is highly questionable whether planning permission will ever be granted for these plots - you could end up losing your investment.

Still interested? Then we suggest that you first contact a lawyer before parting with your hard-earned cash.

Bogus 'Charity' Collections: You may recently have received a leaflet entitled 'Clothing Collection' that requests donations of unwanted clothes and other items. Please be aware that the collection is being organised by a commercial company called Kraslava Services Seven Ltd and not a charity as might appear from first sight of the leaflet.

Before you leave out your unwanted items for collection we first suggest that you search for Kraslava Services Seven on Google or a similar search engine. There are some interesting reports on the company, particularly from the BBC.

Following the disaster in London: The Ambulance Service have launched a national In Case of Emergency (ICE) campaign.

The idea is that you store the word " I C E " in your mobile phone address book and against it enter the number of the person you would want to be contacted "In Case of Emergency".

In an emergency situation ambulance and hospital staff will then be able to quickly find out who your next of kin are and be able to contact them. It's so simple that everyone can do it. Please do.

Stirtloe House Gardens: Come and enjoy a family summer afternoon in the garden of Stirtloe House on Sunday July 10th 2pm-5pm. Purchase home made refreshments and enjoy listening to the St Neots Big Band. Entry £2.50 (£1.50 concessions). No charge for accompanied children. .

Buckden Surgery Patients' Association: The BSPA are still in need of volunteer drivers to help patients with transport difficulties attend medical appointments. If you can help, please contact the scheme co-ordinator via the Buckden Surgery. (For more information, please see the BSPA's web page under the 'Community' section.)

A14 UPDATE - VILLAGE MEETING

Buckden Scout Hut Friday evening 10th June 9 p.m.

If you are at all concerned about how the proposed 6-lane motorway will affect the village (click here), then come along to the inaugural meeting of the Buckden A14 Action Group. Find out what you can do to help. A successful campaign will require positive action from Buckden residents. In the meantime, please see the action group's website at www.buckden-a14-actiongroup.org.uk for more information

Music Evening: On Sunday May 22nd there will be a music evening with the New Cambridge Singers at St. Mary's Parish Church, Buckden. Click here for more information. (Proceeds will go towards Buckden's Living Stones Appeal.)

Quilt Exhibition: Make a note in your diary... June 17th to 19th there will be an exhibition of quilts at St. Mary's. Click here for more information. (Proceeds will go towards Buckden's Living Stones Appeal.)

Worker's Educational Association: What is the WEA? If you haven't heard of the Workers Educational Association (or have heard of the organisation but don't know what it does) see the WEA's webpage in the Societies section. The update webpage contains details of the forthcoming series of lectures for the Summer 2005, Autumn 2005 and Spring 2006 terms.

Free Web Pages: You may not be aware that if you run a club or society in the village you can advertise for free on the Buckden Village Website. We'll provided you with a free web page that either you can update yourself via your browser or we'll update for you.

If you us send an e-mail please note that, because of our other work commitments, it may take us several days to respond. However, we do aim to reply to each and every e-mail we receive. So, if you haven't heard from us in a week or so, please resend your e-mail. Your original (or our reply) may have got lost in the World Wide Web!

50p for a bicycle, 50p for two chairs: These were some of the bargains to be had in the recent auction held in The Buckden Millennium Community Centre. The auction was a great success and raised a grand total of £1,097 for the upkeep of St Mary's Parish Church.

Don't miss out on a bargain next year. Make a note in your diary for the second Saturday in February.

Auction: The annual auction in aid of the upkeep of St Mary's Church is to be held at the Millennium Community Centre on Saturday 12th February. Click here for more information.

Ghosts at RAF Alconbury: We recently received an e-mail from a retired police officer who is researching paranormal activities in the area. Apparently, in the past there had been some 'strange goings on' at RAF Alconbury. Please see the 'Letters Page' if you have any information that might help with his research.

Bogus 'Charity' Collections: We've been made aware that, once again, certain commercial organisations are leafleting parts of the village with requests for donations of unwanted clothes and other items. The leaflets give the appearance of having come from a charity. See November 2004 in 'Past Months' (at the foot of this page) for more information.

Bogus 'Charity' Collections: You may recently have received a leaflet entitled 'Third World Clothing Collection' that requests donations of unwanted clothes and other items. Please be aware that the collection is being organised by a commercial company called Lunetex and not a charity as might appear from first sight of the leaflet.

Now we are not saying that you shouldn't leave your unwanted items out for Lunetex to collect if you so wish, but please be aware of their status. (Earlier this year Olonex targeted us in a similar manner. A quick search on Google will result in some interesting facts about the company.)

Almshouse Vacancies: Buckden is fortunate to have two sets of Almshouses in the village, namely South's Almshouses and the Burberry Homes. If you are interested in living in one of these apartments (or know someone who might be), please click here for further information. (Additional details can also be found on the Buckden Parochial Charities' webpage.)

Buckden's Living Stones Appeal - Bible Reading Marathon: The unique marathon reading of the Bible at St Mary's Church proved to be a great success. Over a period of four days and three nights a team of volunteer and guest readers read the entire Bible from cover to cover. Those that could not make it to the church recorded their contributions, which were then played back at the appropriate point in the proceedings.

At the time of writing approximately £12,000 has been collected/pledged, however this figure is likely to increase as tax benefits are reclaimed from the Inland Revenue.

For those that are interested, a scrapbook of the whole event is on display at St Mary's Church.

MJ Fridge Magnets have produced a gift-packaged magnet of St. Mary's Church for the Living Stones Appeal. Click here for more information.

Buckden Bible Reading Marathon: This unique event to raise money for Buckden's Living Stones Appeal is now only days away. The entire bible will be read from end-to-end starting on 9th September and finishing on 12th September. Martin Bell, of television fame, will be reading a section on Saturday 11th. Johnathon Djanogly, our local M.P., will be reading on Friday morning.

We are still looking for more readers. All the necessary information is now in St Mary's Church, which is open during the day. If you are away on holiday or busy, we can arrange to record your reading at a time convenient to you - see this month's Roundabout for more information.

(The Living Stones Appeal is a village project to build Community Rooms with modern facilities in St Mary's - the Parish Church of Buckden. The Community Rooms will benefit the whole community by providing more space and facilities for church and village functions.)

Buckden Local History Society: BLHS's new Programme of Events for 2004-2005 can be found on their webpage. The season starts on Wednesday September 1st with a talk by Nita Luxford on "Gettin' a livin' from The Great Ouse". Click here for more information.

25 Years of the Buckden Roundabout: We congratulate The Buckden Roundabout on reaching its Silver Jubilee this month. (For those of you not resident in the village, The Buckden Roundabout is an informative monthly magazine delivered free to 1250 homes in Buckden and Diddington.)

Housing Need Survey - still not too late! Have you returned Huntingdonshire District Council's housing survey? This was sent out to every address in Buckden several weeks ago with a completion date of mid-July. However, we've been assured that it is still not too late to complete and return the survey, the results of which will be an important consideration in decisions about affordable housing in Buckden. The more responses received, the more accurate the results will be.

Living Stones Appeal: This is a village project to build Community Rooms with modern facilities in St Mary's - the Parish Church of Buckden. The Community Rooms will benefit the whole community by providing more space and facilities for church and village functions. The appeal will be launched next month with a marathon reading of the entire bible over 3 days and nights. Click here for more information.

Housing Need Survey: Huntingdonshire District Council will be writing to every address in Buckden over the next few days to ask residents to complete a housing need survey of the village. The results of the survey will be an important consideration in decisions about affordable housing in Buckden and, of course, the more responses received, the more accurate the results will be. Please take time to complete and return the questionnaire.

Living Stones Appeal: As mentioned last month, this is a new village project to build Community Rooms with modern facilities in St Mary's - the Parish Church of Buckden. The Community Rooms will benefit the whole community by providing more space and facilities for church and village functions. The appeal will be launched in September with a marathon reading of the entire bible over 3 days and nights. Click here for more information.

Living Stones Appeal: This is a new village project to build Community Rooms with modern facilities in St Mary's - the Parish Church of Buckden. The Community Rooms will benefit the whole community by providing more space and facilities for church and village functions. The appeal will be launched in September with a marathon reading of the entire bible over 3 days and nights. Click here for more information.

Bogus 'Charity' Collections: We have all received leaflets from organisations requesting donations of unwanted clothes and other items. The natural assumption is that the requests are from charities, however this isn't always the case. One such organisation that has been leafleting the village recently is a company called Olonex. Now we are not saying that you shouldn't leave your unwanted items out for Olonex to collect if you so wish, but to be aware that they are not a charity. (A quick search on Google will result in some interesting facts about the company.)

Chemist Application: The possibility that a chemist may open in Buckden is causing concern as it could threaten services provided by the village surgery. Click here to read a document on the matter produced by the Buckden Surgery Patients' Association.

An open meeting for all patients of the Buckden Surgery is to be held on Tuesday 11th May. (Note. We've also added a discussion topic on the Village Forum. Have your say!)

Buckden Parochial Charities: Several charities exist in the village to provide immediate relief to residents of Buckden who find themselves in unexpected hardship and to make occasional donations to village organisations providing communal amenities. The charities are managed by a group of trustees that also administer the two sets of Almshouses in Buckden. More information can be found on the Buckden Parochial Charities' webpage. (Under 'Community'.)

Worker's Educational Association: What is the WEA? If you haven't heard of the Workers Educational Association (or have heard of the organisation but don't know what it does) see the WEA's new updated, webpage in the Societies section. The webpage also provides details of the forthcoming season of lectures.

Spring Clean: Thanks to all of you who have provided information to help us to 'Spring Clean' the village website. If there are any areas that still have out-of-date information (e.g. old contact details) please let us know.

If you are interested in finding out more, please click the 'Feedback' button at the foot of the screen and enter 'Free Web Pages' as the subject of the form.

(Note. If you run a business, you can also have web space on the site. We'll make a small charge, which goes towards providing free web pages for the charitable organisations in the village. Some business have found it sufficiently profitable to also advertise on our affiliated website www.big-village.co.uk).

Spring Clean: Ok, we know we are still in the depths of winter, but it won't be too long before spring is here and we'd like to 'Spring Clean' the village website. If you are aware of any out-of-date information, please let us know and we will update the site accordingly. (Thanks to Buckden Neighbourhood Watch and the Playgroup for the updates they provided recently.)

Buckden Cricket Club 2004 Fixture List: The new fixture list for the forthcoming season can be found on Buckden Cricket Club's webpage in the 'Sports' section.

Workers' Educational Association: 'The Twentieth Century Stage Musical' and 'An Introduction to Psychology'. These are two interesting topics that will be covered by the WEA in 2004. For more information please see the Workers' Educational Association's webpage in the 'Societies ' section.

House sellers - advertise your property for free! Until the end of January you can advertise your house for free on Big Village Property. Click here for more information or go to the Property Section on www.big-village.co.uk

Buckden's Christmas Celebrations start in earnest on Sunday 7th December with a Children's Fun Fair in the High Street. The Village Christmas Lights will be switched on at 4:00 p.m. by Richard Furbank, Chairman of the Parish Council.

From 2.30 p.m. to 4.45 p.m. meet Santa in his Grotto at the George Hotel - admission 50p.

www.big-village.co.uk: During 2003, we expanded our concept site for Huntingdonshire www.big-village.co.uk. Some parts of the Buckden Village site are now linked to Big Village, which should give rise to improved facilities in the future. For example, the Events and Local Ads sections share the same database. This means that events and small adverts published on the Buckden Village site will also appear on the Big Village site and so are likely to reach a wider audience.

The team is excited about prospects for both the Buckden Village and Big Village sites in the New Year. Call us on 01480 812868 if you would like more information.

New Schools Section: Following several requests, we've now added a new section dedicated to local schools, that includes Buckden CE Primary School, Hinchingbrooke School, St Peter's School and Kimbolton School.

New Fund for Community Groups: In case you missed it last month.... Local community groups in Cambridgeshire are to get a boost as the borough has been chosen as one of the areas to receive three years funding from the £150 million Local Network Fund for Children and Young People. The Local Network Fund enables local voluntary and community groups to tackle child poverty and provide opportunities for young people. £360,000 is available for Cambridgeshire groups to bid for in this financial year. Click here for more information on the fund.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

If you have something that you would like to sell or a service that you'd like to offer, see our Small Ads Service - it's both free and easy to use. (For more information, see the notes at the foot of the 'Local Adverts' web page. So long as you have a valid e-mail address, you could be placing your advert within minutes of registering.)

Remember, you can find out about forthcoming events in the village, and nearby, on the 'Events' page. (If you wish to advertise an event, all you need is a valid e-mail address - there is no charge for the service! See the Events page for more details.)

New Fund for Community Groups: Local community groups in Cambridgeshire are to get a boost as the borough has been chosen as one of the areas to receive three years funding from the £150 million Local Network Fund for Children and Young People. The Local Network Fund enables local voluntary and community groups to tackle child poverty and provide opportunities for young people. £360,000 is available for Cambridgeshire groups to bid for in this financial year. Click here for more information on the fund.

Buckden Surgery Practice Leaflet: The sugery's latest Practice Leaflet can be found on their webpage. (Under the Community Section.)

Link to Buckden School: After many months of preparation and support, from a wide range of people at the school, Buckden School has created it's own website. We are very pleased to include a link top their site. "Welcome Buckden School". Click here for more information.

Friends of Buckden School Minutes: Just while we are trying find them a permanent home on the site please follow the link to the "Minutes from the 9th September Meeting". Click here for more information.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

New Houses: A number of new houses are being constructed in an extensive development just off Silver Street. For details of these properties, please refer to the contact information on the Twigden Homes' webpage.

Buckden Local History Society: BLHS's new Programme of Events for 2003-2004 can be found on their webpage. The season starts on Wednesday September 3rd with a talk by Alec Foster on "The History & Development of Mechanical Music". Click here for more information.

Parish Council Newsheets and Newsletters: If you were not already aware, you can find copies of all Buckden Parish Council's monthly newsheets dating from November 1999 on their webpage. ( Click here.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Children's Nursery: The latest addition to the site is Buckden Day Nursery whose premises are located close to the village's junior school. The nursery has members of staff that are fully qualified to look after children aged from 6 weeks to 5 years. For more information about the nursery please see their webpage under the Shops, Pubs and Businesses section.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Worker's Educational Association: The WEA's webpage now contains details of the topics to be covered in their 2004 season. See the WEA's webpage for more details and for information about registering. (Under 'Societies'.)

Buckden Cricket Club: We've updated the cricket club's fixture list for 2003 and added a link to their new website on the BCC's webpage. (Under 'Sports'.)

Planning Applications Online: Huntingdonshire District Council has recently opened a site that allows the public to view all new planning applications, including the plans themselves. Go to www.huntsdc.gov.uk/publicaccess for more information. (Thanks to Mike Storey for this link.)

Broadband Buckden: As stated last month, high-speed Internet access is coming to Buckden Exchange on 25th June! For those of you who may have missed it, we've reproduced our short Broadband Guide on this new technology:

(Note that BT's telephone exchange not only covers Buckden, but it also covers the villages of Diddington, Offords, Grafham, West Perry and Ellington.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Broadband Buckden: High-speed Internet access is coming to Buckden Exchange on 25th June! For those of you who are unaware of this new technology, we've reproduced our short Broadband Guide:

(Note that BT's telephone exchange not only covers Buckden, but it also covers the villages of Diddington, Offords, Grafham, West Perry and Ellington.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Broadband Buckden: On Friday 28th March we hit the trigger level of 300 registrations set by BT. So what happens now? Well, according to our sources, BT will carry out a final check on the data. If the registrations appear to be valid, then in two to three weeks time, BT will publish a 'Ready For Service' date. This date indicates when the first users will be able to connect to the service. We shall wait and see what happens over the next month!

Even though we have reached our target, the more valid registrations we have the better. If you haven't registered for high-speed Internet access yet, please do so by clicking on the following link (Note. Registering interest does not commit you to taking the service.)

Remember that BT's telephone exchange not only covers Buckden, but it also covers the Offords, Diddington, Grafham, West Perry and Ellington.

Buckden Handbell Ringers: This popular local group often play at local village events. For information about the Buckden Handbell Ringers, please see their webpage in the 'Societies' section.

Buckden Cricket Club: The BCC's new fixture list for 2003 can be found on their webpage in the 'Sports' section.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Broadband Buckden Gets Closer! Over the last month the number of registrations increased significantly from 120 to 177. This means that we are now about 60% towards our target of 300 registrations. (Note. Update 28th March - we've made it! 300 registrations!)

If you haven't registered for high-speed Internet access yet, please do so by clicking on the following link. (Note. Registering interest does not commit you to taking the service.)

Remember that BT's telephone exchange not only covers Buckden, but it also covers the Offords, Diddington, Grafham, West Perry and Ellington.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Angling Society: New to this website is the Offord & Buckden Angling Society. If you would like to fish on the Great Ouse, then this maybe the club for you. See their webpage under 'Societies'.

Broadband Buckden? Well, we are getting closer! In January BT reduced their 'trigger' level from 500 to a more realistic 300, which means that we are now about 40% towards our target.

BT's telephone exchange not only covers Buckden, but it also covers the Offords, Diddington, Grafham, West Perry and Ellington. Between the villages, we must surely be able to find another 180 people who would be willing to register interest in the service? (As we have stated in previous months, registering interest does not commit you to taking the service.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Broadband Buckden? At the time of writing 111 people in the village and surrounding area had registered interest in broadband Internet access.

If you haven't yet registered, then please consider doing so by clicking on the following link: (Note that this does not commit you to taking the service!)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Buckden's Christmas Celebrations start in earnest on Sunday 8th December with a Children's Fun Fair in the High Street. The Village Christmas Lights will be switched on at 4:30 p.m. by Tilly Farmer-Wright, Chairman of the Parish Council, to be followed by the raffle draw at 5:00 p.m.

From 1.30 p.m. to 4.15 p.m. you will be able meet Santa in his Grotto. (Lion Hotel admission 50p. All proceeds to charity.)

Throughout the month, there are number of other Christmas activities taking place in the village. For more information please visit the 'Events' page or refer to the latest issue of the Roundabout.

Broadband Buckden? At the time of writing 98 people in the area had registered interest in broadband Internet access, which is an increase of about 20 since last month. Encouraging, but this still falls far short of the 500 required by BT before they will consider installing the necessary equipment in the Buckden Exchange.

If you haven't registered please do so by clicking on the following link: (Registering interest does not mean that you are committed to taking the service!)

Christmas Fruit Baskets Don't know what to buy you friends or relatives this Christmas? Once again, Top Banana are selling their extra special Christmas Fruit Baskets. (Discounts apply for local deliveries. Most major credit cards accepted.) Click here for more information.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Broadband Buckden? Over the last few months we've received several e-mails concerned with the lack of broadband (high-speed) Internet access in the area. We believe, as many of you do, that broadband would be of benefit to both individuals and the community. For those of you who are unaware of this new technology, we've produced this short guide:

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Public transport - route planner and timetables: If you use public transport, then you may be interested in a very useful website that we were recently made aware of:

www.travelineeastanglia.org.uk is the website of Traveline, a government-sponsored initiative to promote all public transport in the region including trains, buses, coaches and trams. The service covers all East Anglia, including Buckden. Buckden can be entered as a "town" on the journey planner. Local bus, train and coach services are included - so appropriate connections are worked out as necessary.

It is also possible to contact Traveline on the generic Public Transport enquiry phone number of 0870 608 2608. Again this covers all public transport. The same number applies throughout the UK but routes to a local office in the first instance.

Newsheets and Newsletters: If you were not already aware, you can find copies of all Buckden Parish Council's monthly newsheets dating from November 1999 on their webpage. ( Click here.)

Similarly, you can find copies of all Buckden Surgery Patient Association's bi-annual newsletters dating from February 2001 on their webpage. ( Click here.)

(Note. For up-to-date information from the Parish Council, click here to view their notice board.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Buckden Local History Society: BLHS's new Programme of Events for 2002-2003 can be found on their webpage. The season starts on Wednesday September 4th with a talk by Joan Walton on "Angels & Devils". Click here for more information.

High-speed Internet access: Frustrated by the speed of your Internet connection? Do images seem to take forever to download? Well the situation can be considerably improved with a broadband connection from BT, which offers a transfer speed up to 10 times faster than is possible with the fastest modem.

However, for BT to supply broadband to Buckden and the surrounding villages we need to demonstrate that there is sufficient interest in the area. Have a look at Nic Plum's entry on the Village Forum for more information. (There is no commitment when registering your 'phone number.)

Note. We might also look at alternate wireless technologies that offer high-speed Internet access should BT feel that there is insufficient interest in the area to upgrade the local exchange. (Thanks to Peter Milloy for his e-mail on this subject.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

New Houses: As many in the village will already be aware, a number of new houses are being constructed in an extensive development just off Silver Street. For details of these properties, please refer to the contact information on the Twigden Homes' webpage.

Festival Week: By all accounts the Buckden Festival Week was a great success, however, if this village tradition is to continue then volunteers are needed. If you would like to help with next year's Festival Week, please send an e-mail and we will pass your details onto the appropriate people.

Fastest Serve in Buckden: On Festival Day, the Buckden Lawn Tennis Club held a competition to see who had the fastest tennis serve in the village. The winners were as follows:

Contact the Elderly We recently received the following e-mail from Mary Barnes...

"I am setting up a branch of Contact the Elderly in Cambridgeshire - a service which helps to alleviate the loneliness felt by some elderly people. It is a totally free service and we wondered if anyone in your area might benefit from it or if anyone would like to help out by either acting as a host or a driver for our monthly tea parties."

If you are interested in helping Mary with her quest, please contact her on 01223 566522, or send an e-mail to Mary.Barnes@opp-links.org.uk. If there is sufficient interest in the village, we will happily create a webpage for this worthwhile organisation. (Click here to find out more about Contact The Elderly.)

Village Forum: Our latest addition to the site is the Buckden Village Forum. If there is something about the village that irritates you, something that you think could be improved or perhaps you would just like to start a discussion on a topic that interests you, then have your say on the Village Forum.

(Note, this is a free service, however to participate in the discussion, you will need a valid account. Details are on the Village Forum webpage.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

The Festival Week Committee is still looking for sponsors and/or prize donations. All money raised stays in the village to help leisure facilities and amenities. If you would like to help this year, or in the future, you are very welcome. Please contact Julie on 811101.

(Note, this is a free service, however to participate in the discussion, you will need a valid account. Details are on the Village Forum webpage.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Village Forum: The latest addition to the site is our new Village Forum. Basically, this is an electronic message board that allows you to have your say about issues important to you and the village.

To kick-start the forum, we've created the first topic for discussion, which is entitled 'What facilities should there be for teenagers'. If you are a teenager (or a parent of a teenager) with views on the facilities (or lack of them) in the village, please make your point of view known on the Village Forum.

(Note, to participate in the discussion, or to create a new topic, you will need a valid account. Details are on the Village Forum.)

Buckden Festival 2002: Buckden Festival runs from Sunday 30th June to Sunday 7th July. For full details of the festival click here!

Your New Council: Full details of your new Buckden Parish Council can be found on the Buckden Parish Council Newsheet for June 2002 .(Under Community / Buckden Parish Council.)

Tennis coaching: The Buckden Tennis Club will be offering coaching to youngsters up to the age of 16 years as from June 11. (More information can be found in the June issue of The Buckden Roundabout.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Curtains and blinds: Buckden Wallpaper, Paint and Interiors are now concentrating on the supply and fitting of quality curtains and blinds. If you would like to find out more please visit their shop in Church Street, alternatively, click here to visit the Buckden Wallpaper, Paint and Interiors' website.

BSPA and Buckden Surgery: Both these sites have been updated with fresh information in the last few weeks. (Click here for the BSPA webpage; click here for the Buckden Surgery webpage.)

Christian Aid Week: Buckden is doing is doing it's bit! Click here for more information. (Details are also on the Events database.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Buckden Estates continues to attract great interest, both through its website and its regular advert in The Town Crier (coverage 42,000 houses).

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Interior design and property refurbishment: Interior Concept, which has a number of satisfied customers in the area, specialises in the design, planning and refurbishment of both domestic and business properties. More information on this innovative company can be found on Interior Concept's webpage. (Under 'Shops & Businesses'.)

Scaffolding: With over 40 years experience in the industry, Crusaders Scaffolding aims to supply a full range of scaffolding at competitive prices. For information on the company and its services, please visit Crusaders Scaffolding's webpage. (Under 'Shops & Businesses'.)

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Launched only two months ago, Buckden Estates is attracting significant interest, particularly as the website is now complimented with advertising in The Town Crier, which has coverage of some 42,000 houses in the area. (See the Buckden Estates' advert in the property section.)

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Properties For Sale / Properties Wanted: Launched last month, Buckden Estates seems to have created a significant amount of interest judging by the 'hit rate' on the site. In March the interest is likely to increase still further as the website will be complimented by terrestrial advertising in The Town Crier, which has coverage of some 42,000 houses in the area.

Alternatively, if you are looking for property in the area, please complete the Property Wanted Form and we will add your details to the mailing list.

Buckden Junior Football Team: Buckden under 11s have got through the first round of the Hunts Mini Soccer Cup Knock Out by beating St Ives Rangers. The match, which was played on the 16th February in Buckden, was a very hard game but eventually the team came out 4 - 2 winners. The next round is on the 16th March against Brampton whom Buckden have never beaten. The boys will be fighting all the way and would appreciate support from the village. Kick off will be at 11:00am on the Buckden Playing Fields.

Buckden Cricket Club: The new fixtures list for 2002 can be found on the Buckden Cricket Club's webpage. The season starts on the 27th April with an away match against Castor & Ailsworth.

Roundabout Award: In case you missed it last month, The Buckden Roundabout was runner up in the 'Best Community Feel' category of BBC Radio Cambridgeshire's Parish Community Magazine Competition 2001. Click here to see the certificate.

www.buckden.info: Can't remember our website address? We've made it even easier to find us by registering www.buckden.info and redirecting it to www.buckden-village.co.uk. So next time you want to reach the website but can't recall our address, think Buckden, think information and then enter www.buckden.info.

If you have something that you would like to sell; a property to rent; a service that you'd like to offer, see our Small Ads Service - it's both free and easy to use. (For more information, see the notes at the foot of the 'Local Adverts' web page. So long as you have a valid e-mail address, you could be placing your advert within minutes of registering.)

Sell Your House: Buckden Estates is launched. In celebration, the first three customers to provide details of their property will be offered the service for free. Simply complete the form on the website or send an e-mail to sales@buckden-estates.co.uk. If you are not one of the first three, you will still be able to advertise your house at a greatly reduced rate - see www.buckden-estates.co.uk for more details.

Roundabout Award: Congratulations to The Buckden Roundabout for their achievement in the 'Best Community Feel' category of BBC Radio Cambridgeshire's Parish Community Magazine Competition 2001. Click here to see the certificate.

Blinds & Curtains: We've updated the website of Buckden Wallpaper, Paint and Interiors to include more details and pictures on their extensive range of blinds, curtains and accessories. Click here for more information.

Einstein's Riddle: The answer to the riddle that appeared in December's Christmas Cracker is 'the German owns the fish'!

Buckden's Christmas celebrations start in earnest on Sunday 9th December with a Children's Fun Fair in the High Street. The Village Christmas Lights will be switched on at 4.30 p.m. by Tilly Farmer-Wright, Chairman of the Parish Council.

From 2.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. you will be able meet Santa in his Grotto. (George Coaching Inn - admission 50p. Tea, coffee and light refreshments will be served in the bar.)

(Please note that between 10:30 a.m. and 7.30 p.m., the High Street will be closed from the junction with Church Street to just north of the vehicle entrance to the Towers. An alternative route will be signposted.)

Christmas Fruit Baskets: Don't know what to buy you friends or relatives this Christmas? Why not send them an extra special Christmas Fruit Basket from Top Banana? (Discounts apply for local deliveries. Most major credit cards accepted.) Click here for more information.

Paper Snowflakes: Whilst surfing the Internet recently, we chanced upon an interesting website dedicated to paper snowflakes. If you and your children are at a loss for something to do this Christmas, then perhaps you might like to try making some of the sample snowflakes on the site - they are very decorative. Click here to go to David Stredulinsky's Snowflake Page.

Christmas Cracker: You've opened all your presents, watched all your new videos and are bored with what's on television - why not take a look at Dave and Martin's Christmas Cracker? There are games to play and a rather tricky riddle to solve! (We'll publish the answer to the riddle in the New Year.)

Coming soon... We are looking at offering a facility in the New Year to complement our popular free Small Ads Service. Known as Buckden-Estates.co.uk, this new website will allow local people to advertise their properties quickly and easily, and at low rates. If you wish to pre-register your interest, please send an e-mail to sales@buckden-estates.co.uk giving your name and contact details.

Would you like to see what Buckden Village looked like 50 years or so ago? Then visit the new 1950's 'Buildings and Places' section in 'The Gallery'. We've reproduced a number of photographs and postcards that we've received over the last few months, plus added a few more to some other sections.

ADSL is the 4-letter acronym for a technology that is often used to provide high-speed (broadband) Internet access. However, ADSL isn't yet available in our village, but it might be if enough people registered their interest with BT - do so at www.btopenworld.com/broadband. (Thanks to Mike Avery for making us aware of this site.)

If you send an e-mail please note that, because of our other work commitments, it may take us several days to respond. However, we do aim to reply to each and every e-mail we receive. So, if you haven't heard from us in a week or so, please resend your e-mail. Your original (or our reply) may have got lost in the World Wide Web!

With 42 separate watches, the Buckden Neighbourhood Watch (BNW) organisation is effectively able to cover the whole of the village. If you would like to find out more about the BNW, and how they are helping to make Buckden a safer place in which to live, please visit their web page. (Fast Select Menu under 'Community'.)

We recently received an e-mail from Ian Roberts who is very keen to start a Shakespeare Appreciation Society in the village. Please contact Ian directly at iancharles.roberts@ntlworld.com if this is of interest to you.

The complete programme of events for 2001-2002 is now on the Buckden Local History Society's web page (Fast Select Menu, under 'Societies') as well as being listed on the 'Events' database.

Buckden From The Air: Last month we mentioned on our home page how you can use your postcode to see your house from the air. If you missed September's issue don't worry, we've published the instructions again on the 'Information Zone'.

A1 Road Improvements: The roadworks continue. Click here to read the latest status report as provided by the Highways Agency at the end of September.

Buckden from the air. With www.multimap.com, Buckden is one of the few non-urban areas in the country where you can call up not just a local map but also an aerial photograph. To see your house from the air, first go to the www.multimap.com website, select 'Aerial photos of London and other cities in the UK', type in your postcode and then follow the instructions. Fascinating, and the quality is good! As an example, click here to see an aerial photograph of Buckden Towers. (Thanks go to Mike Storey for providing information about this site.)

Over the past month or so, we've received several more interesting e-mails about Buckden, plus an e-mail about an issue that should concern everyone in the village - speeding! If you would like to read these e-mails, then go to the Letters Page.

And finally..... The Buckden Surgery Patients' Association (BSPA) are still in need of volunteer drivers to help patients with transport difficulties attend medical appointments. If you can help, please contact the scheme co-ordinator via the Buckden Surgery. (More information, please see the BSPA's web page under the 'Community' section.)

This month we've added a number of early photographs of the village to The Gallery, two of which date back as far as the late 19th Century. (A photograph of the Crown Inn with owners, plus the Buckden Victoria Jubilee parade entering the grounds of Buckden Towers.) We've also included a collection of photographs of the old Buckden Sawmill that was located just outside the village where the A1 now runs. (Thanks to Robin Gibson of the Buckden Local History Society and Leslie Glessner for providing the photographs.)

We've included an alternative form of presentation on the thumbnail pages in The Gallery for visitors with WebTV browsers, or old versions of computer browser. (E.g. early versions of Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, Opera, etc.) Our thanks go to Tony Sharman for his help in testing this new facility with an Internet-enabled TV.

Encouraged by the response that we had last month to our new Small Ads Service, we decided to extend the facility to our sister websites of Brampton (www.brampton-village.co.uk), Offord Cluny and Offord D'Arcy (www.offord-village.co.uk). So if you have something that you would like to sell; a property to rent; a service that you'd like to offer, you now have a larger audience!

To use the Small Ads Service, please see the notes at the foot of the 'Local Adverts' web page. So long as you have a valid e-mail address, you could be placing your advert within minutes of registering

As many of you will know, BBC Radio Cambridgeshire recently visited Buckden and conducted a live four-hour broadcast from the Millennium Community Centre.

The team of presenters (Gerald Main, Christopher South, and Ronnie Barbour) were highly complimentary about the village, its facilities and this website. Of the Buckden Village Website, Gerald Main said "...it's one of the best I've seen and I say that without any hesitation..."

During their visit, BBC Radio Cambridgeshire took a number of photographs of people from the village who participated in the broadcast. Radio Cambridgeshire have kindly supplied us with copies of these photographs, which we've added to our growing collection in 'The Gallery'.

Over the last two months or so, we've been busy creating our new and free of charge Small Ads service. This service is now available on this site through the new 'Local Adverts' section, which has replaced the old 'For Sale or Rent' section.

To use the Small Ads service, please see the notes at the foot of the 'Local Adverts' web page. So long as you have a valid e-mail address, you could be placing your advert within minutes of registering

Remember, you can find out about forthcoming events in the village, and nearby, on the 'Events' page. (If you wish to advertise an event, all you need is a valid e-mail address - there is no charge for the service! See the Events page for more details.)

This month we welcome the Buckden Cricket Club to the site. The club, which competes at various levels in the Hunts League, has regular weekend fixtures throughout the season for both its junior and senior teams. If you are interested in joining or would just like to know when and where the teams are playing, please visit the Buckden Cricket Club's web page. (Under 'Sports'.)

The Spy Story: Recently, we received an interesting story from the USA about Buckden and a WWII spy that prompted us into creating a new section entitled Anecdotal History. For the time being, we've appended this new section to the foot of the History Page, but will create a completely new section if there is sufficient interest. So if you have any stories that you'd like to share, please e-mail them to us and we will try to include them in this new section.

Do you have something that you would like to sell; a property to rent; a service that you'd like to offer or whatever? Then watch this space! We are currently testing a new (and free) Small Ads service that will be available through this website. Using the facilities of Big Village (www.big-village.co.uk), the service will also be available through our sister websites in Brampton (www.brampton-village.co.uk), Offord Cluny and Offord D'Arcy (www.offord-village.co.uk).

During April we received several more photographs of the village, a couple of which date back to the nineteenth century. We'll be adding these photographs (with others) to 'The Gallery' over the coming weeks.

And finally..... The Buckden Surgery Patients' Association (BSPA) are still in need of volunteer drivers to help patients with transport difficulties attend medical appointments. If you can help, please contact the scheme co-ordinator Mr Geoffrey Griffiths via the Buckden Surgery. (More information on the scheme can be found on the BSPA's web page under the 'Community' section.)

In addition, we've also updated the web page of the Buckden Surgery and added the most recent BSPA Newsletter to the Buckden Surgery Patients Association's web page.

The more observant readers may have noticed a new section on the site entitled 'The Gallery' - this is intended to be an online photographic record of Buckden past and present. To start with, we have included a collection of photographs taken in the 1950s plus some photographs of more recent events. Shortly, we expect to expand this section with copies of photographs provided by the Buckden Local History Society. We will also be publishing photographs of Buckden as it is today for the interest of ex-residents who visit the site.

'Six reasons to join the online community'. Following last summer's review by Simon Crerar in the Sunday Times (see foot of page), we've again been mentioned by the paper. This time, we appear in The Sunday Times 'Doors' Internet supplement under the caption 'Unite the Neighbours'. With 5 other sites, the Buckden Village website is given as one of six reasons to join the online community. Click here to read the text of the article.

The entry in The Sunday Times supplement resulted in us receiving a number of e-mails from around the country. We've reproduced a few of these e-mails on the 'Letters' page. (OK, so we're blowing our own trumpet - but why not?)

'Buckden an Historic Town'. Read this interesting article about our village (town?) on the Parish Council Newsheet for March. (The Council's newsheets for the last 17 months can be accessed from their web page under 'Community'.)

3PR Computing are the latest addition to the site. For those that are not already aware, the company offers a wide range of products and services to both home and business PC users. If you are interested in a new computer, or just wish to upgrade your existing system, please visit 3PR's web page for more information. (Under 'Shops and Businesses'.)

We still intend to start a photo gallery as referred to last month, however, technical problems have delayed publication of this new section. We anticipate having the gallery up and running by next month. (If you have any old and/or interesting photographs of the village, please contact us - we might like to include them in the gallery.)

So long as there is sufficient interest, we still intend to start a Services Section over the next month or so. See last January's editorial for more information. ('Past Months' at the foot of this page.)

Top Banana are now able to deliver their fruit baskets to anywhere on the UK mainland. See their new web page on fruit baskets for more information. (Top Banana can be found under 'Shops and Businesses'.)

Have you any old and/or interesting photographs of the village? If so, please contact us as we would like to start a Photo Gallery - we've already received some photographs taken in the mid-50s from an ex-resident who now lives in Australia. (Thanks Cecilia!) However, please note that you must be the owner of the photographs or have their permission to publish - we do not wish to infringe copyright!

We intend to start a Services Section over the next month or two for small businesses and organisations that would like to advertise in Buckden and the surrounding villages. There will be no charge for this facility, however, entries will be limited to twenty words, a contact telephone number and/or e-mail address. If you are interested, please complete the feedback form on the website; enter 'Services' in the 'Subject' section and enter the details that you wish to appear on the website in the 'Comments' section. Alternatively, send us an e-mail with your information!

And finally..... The Buckden Surgery Patients' Association (BSPA) are still in need of volunteer drivers to help patients with transport difficulties attend medical appointments. If you can help, please contact the scheme co-ordinator Mr Geoffrey Griffiths via the Buckden Surgery. (More information on the scheme can be found on the BSPA's web page under the 'Community' section.)

It's now over 12 months since we started the site and in that time we have seen it grow significantly both in terms of content (there are currently 25 clubs, societies and businesses represented on the site) and the 'hit rate', which is a measure of the popularity of the site. In the early months of 2000 we averaged 200 hits per month whilst towards the end of the year we averaged 1100 hits per month - a fivefold increase! (The total number of hits for the year was close to 9000 - not too bad for a small village website!)

Since January 2000, the website has been viewed in 36 different countries throughout the world. These include various English-speaking countries (e.g. USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Malta), a number of European countries and some countries where it is difficult to imagine what interest there could be in a small English village, for example Estonia, Russia and Japan to name but three. (If you are visiting from another country, why not send us an e-mail? We'd love to hear from you!)

For January 2001, we'd like to welcome the Buckden Golf Society to the site. This new society aims to hold regular tournaments at a nearby golf course with any profits being fed back into the community (for example, funding a new childrens' play area). You can find out more about the Golf Society by visiting their web page under the 'Sports' section.

We've also added another holiday home in the 'For Sale or Rent' section. If you would like to spend a week in a luxury Scandinavian lodge in the Lake District, then this may well be of interest to you!

Remember, you can find out about forthcoming events in the village, and nearby, on the 'Events' page. (If you wish to advertise an event, all you need is a valid e-mail address - there is no charge for the service! See the Events page for more details.)

And finally..... The Buckden Surgery Patients' Association (BSPA) are still in need of volunteer drivers to help patients with transport difficulties attend medical appointments. If you can help, please contact the scheme co-ordinator Mr Geoffrey Griffiths via the Buckden Surgery. (More information on the scheme can be found on the BSPA's web page under the 'Community' section.)

You've opened all your presents, watched all your new videos and are bored with what's on television - why not take a look at Dave and Martin's Christmas Cracker? There are games to play and a rather tricky riddle to solve! (We'll publish the answer to the riddle in the New Year.)

And finally..... have you a car and some spare time? The Buckden Surgery Patients' Association (BSPA) are in need of volunteer drivers to help patients with transport difficulties attend medical appointments. If you can help, please contact the scheme co-ordinator Mr Geoffrey Griffiths via Buckden Surgery. (More information on the scheme can be found on the BSPA's web page under the 'Community' section.)

This month we welcome the Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions to the site. If you don't already know, the Lions are a group of like-minded individuals who help others in the area through various community activities and fund-raising events. Why not read about their aims and all their good work on the Lions' web page? (Under 'Societies'.)

Remember, you can find out about forthcoming events in the village, and nearby, on the 'Events' page. (This new facility is open for all to use whether business, society or individual. All you need is a valid e-mail address to advertise your event - there is no charge!)

This month we've added an 'Events database' to the site. If you would like to find out what's on in Buckden and the surrounding area, simply click on the new 'Events' button above and follow the instructions - we hope you'll find it useful.

Note. This new facility is open for all to use whether business, society or individual. All you need is a valid e-mail address to advertise your event - there is no charge!

We've been notified of a telephone scam operating in this area - see the Information Page for more details.

The Buckden Theatre Club is the latest addition to the site ('Societies' section). If you're interested in finding out about local theatre, why not visit their web page? There is information on forthcoming events (the first is on September 7^th), photographs of recent productions and 'tips on stagecraft'.

There is also a new programme of events for the Buckden Local History Society, starting with 'Christianity in Britain - The First 1000 Years' on September 6^th. Visit the History Society's web page for more details ('Societies' section).

The Buckden Pre-School Playgroup are still looking for new committee members and a playgroup supervisor (5 mornings per week). If you think that you may be interested, please visit their web page ('Community' section) for more information.

This month we've added add a web page for the Buckden Chess Club (under Societies) and copies of some interesting e-mails from the USA, Canada and Australia - see the 'Food and Drink' page and the 'Letters' page.

A web page has been added for information issued by Buckden Parish Council. Click here to view their notice board.

This month we've added a web page for Buckden Library under 'Community'. (Did you know that you can renew your library books over the Internet?) We've also added a few more e-mails to the Letters page and cars to the 'For Sale' page.

Does a holiday in Florida (staying in a luxury air-conditioned villa with private pool) sound attractive? Find out more by visiting 'Holiday Homes' in the updated 'For Sale or Rent' section.

The Buckden Pre-School Playgroup are looking for new committee members and a playgroup supervisor (5 mornings per week). If you think that you may be interested, please visit their web page ('Community' section) for more information.

The newsheets of the Buckden Parish Council dating back to November 1999 are now being stored on the site. (See 'Parish Council' under 'Community'.) Each month we will added the current newsletter to the site shortly after it has been released to us by the council. The intention is to store at least a year's worth of past newsletters that you will be able to search though using the facilities on this site.

In May we added a 'For Sale' section for cars with the intention of extending it to cover other items in the future. We also added a web page for the Buckden Lawn Tennis Club. (Existing members - have you paid all your subscription and '100 Club' fees yet?)

In this edition we added web pages for The Lion Hotel, Top Banana and Anne Furbank. We also added a new section entitled 'Home & Garden' and updated several of the existing pages including those of the Gardening Association and the Workers' Educational Association.

In this edition we added a web page for the Trinity Village Baptist Church in nearby Perry. (The Baptist Church is part of 'Buckden Churches Together'.) We also included photographs of our junior football teams in the Kid's Zone and added copies of some e-mails received to the letters page.

In this edition we added web pages for the Buckden Surgery Patients' Association and the Buckden Local History Society. We also updated and modified a number of other pages including those of Hardwick Dene, Pro LawnCare, Community, Societies, Food & Drink, and the Letters page.