Ock Street – 1972 hunt and Today flowers

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Thankyou to Colin and Jenny for another picture of the Boxing Day Hunt which Jenny says was in 1972.

Today, the pink gate next to Coxeters was open and there was a new plant and flower seller.

He has winter plants such as cyclamen, and bunches of cut flowers. It is at the same location as Richard Matthews used to have a satellite flower stall.

Another new business, Starbucks opened today on the Market Place. I believe businesses request permission from the Town Council to put out tables and chairs on the cobbles. Starbucks, if they wish, might ask to use the cobbles between Costa and R&R.

MGs meet in Abingdon

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A meet of the MGs in Abingdon is a popular event, especially on Boxing Day, and has taken over from the Old Berks Hunt.

Richard Martin and his wife Gill organise the get together these days. Richard said the get together was originally organised by John Harris and John Venables. The obituary for John Venables was in the Oxford Mail 2 months ago. John Venables was an Oxford city businessman (Shepherd and Woodward manager) and had a collection of five classic MGs, that he restored.

The red building behind was the Queen’s public house in the pictures shown of the Old Berks hunt . It will  be opening as a Starbucks on 28th December 2021.

Old Berks Hunt in Abingdon

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A meet of the Old Berks Hunt in Abingdon was once a popular event, especially on Boxing Day.

A crowd would gather to see the horses, hunts people and hounds. Pete lent me some old slides so I have added his name to the pictures. They appear to be from the mid 1970s.

Owing to the cold wind, it was not a good scenting morning that day.

The only fox gave them a run round near Bagley Woods, and was lost.

Fox Hunting has been banned since 2005 and since then the Old Berks Hunts have carried out trail hunting. They are based near Faringdon and no longer come to Abingdon on Boxing Day.