That’s Swan Upping

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Michael was visiting the Vintners’ Company Hall in London. With its Royal Charter granted in 1363, the Vintners’ Company is one of the earliest London Livery Companies. What concerns Abingdon is that they co-organise the Swan Upping and will be one of the boat crews, along with the Royal boats and the Dyers’, that bring the swan upping to Abingdon this Friday.

Michael took pictures of their wall display showing the swan upping.

This one reads, ‘No, it’s not a footballer’s outing. That’s swan upping. They catches the birds and marks ’em to prevent the smart boys from doing a switch and serving ’em up as Duck a la Maitre d’Hotel in the joints in Soho.’

They also display a stuffed swan.

This blog could well report on the swan upping on Friday if I get there at the right time. There is no right time. But I will be there at around 5 pm at Abingdon Bridge and will wait if I haven’t already missed them.

Puppet Theatre Barge Returns to Abingdon

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The Puppet Theatre Barge, a unique 50-seat marionette theatre on a converted barge, has returned to Abingdon for the first time since 2009 (I believe). The barge is moored near the open-air swimming pool in Abbey Meadows and will be presenting performances of The Selfish Giant.

The Selfish Giant is a story by Oscar Wilde about a giant who builds a wall around his garden so that no one can play in it.

Performances will take place from July 22 to August 13, 2023. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at www.puppetbarge.com.

The Puppet Theatre Barge is a popular attraction for children and adults alike. The intimate setting of the barge creates a cozy and magical atmosphere for the performances.

Flood Resilience Event at Ladygrove Meadow

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Martin emailed me about the Environmental Agency (EA) flood presence on the Ladygrove meadow on Wednesday, 5th July. Martin went along as he lives nearby and suffered flooding on July 22nd 2007. The event was attended by local residents, including members of the Ock Valley Flood Group. (Thank you to them for the use of the picture.)

Martin spoke to a lady from the EA about flood warnings, as he received no warning when his back garden flooded on April 2nd 2023. There was no flood warning at that time, although there was probably a flood alert (lower).

He asked about the River Ock flood storage plan and got the expected answer that it was not economically viable. He also asked about dredging and got the answer that this has little effect, as the nature of a river is that it soon silts up again. However, there is work going on further upstream to ease matters.

He was told about the Thames Valley Flood scheme and website at https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/what-is-the-thames-valley-flood-scheme. The scheme’s primary goal is to reduce flood risk and build climate resilience, and they have 20 different approaches, some of which are relevant to the Ock Valley.

Oxfordshire County Council was also there. Their stall was more about dealing with floods and the Oxfordshire Flood Tool kit https://www.oxfordshirefloodtoolkit.com/.