A Day of Reading, Painting & Giving in Abingdon

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Thanks to Sarah for this report.

On Sunday, 27th July, two local community groups — the Abingdon Silent Book Club and Crafting Optional @ the Grim Dark Society — came together for a day of calm, creativity, and community spirit. This took place at Paws & Play @ Willows in Bury Street.

The day began with the Abingdon Silent Book Club. Over a dozen book lovers gathered to share what they were reading before settling into a hour of silent reading, accompanied by delicious milkshakes and bacon baps (or their preferred treats).

In the afternoon, the Crafting Optional group led a Bob Ross painting session for charity. Following a Bob Ross tutorial, each participant created their own interpretation of the scene.

As a lasting tribute to the day, the paintings will be hung in the Paws & Play café for the public to enjoy — turning the space into a mini-gallery of community art.

Together, the event raised over £300 for four local charities:
🐱 Cats Protection
🎗️ Against Breast Cancer
🐾 Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary
🌍 The Nasio Trust

Sarah says, ‘A huge thank you to everyone who attended, donated, and helped make the day such a success!‘

How the Swan Uppers beat the clock

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There are quite a few visitors wandering around Abingdon at the moment — cameras at the ready or following the treasure trail that includes a clue near our house in West St Helen Street. But the bigger town events are missing — no Excellent Markets, no festivals filling the Market Place with music and colour.

The Swan Upping came through Abingdon eight days ago, but anyone who went down to the river at 5pm on Friday 18th July — the time announced by the town crier — will have missed it.

For those unfamiliar, Swan Upping is an annual ceremonial event in which swans on the River Thames are counted, checked, and marked by a team in traditional uniform, travelling in skiffs.

What I heard is that David Barber, the King’s Swan Marker, didn’t give the crews time to order a pudding at the Barley Mow in Clifton Hampden. The menu there includes choices like Salted Caramel Sundae, Rose Petal & Pistachio Panna Cotta, and Sticky Toffee Pudding. As a result, the flotilla made good time, and by 5pm they had already raised a tot of rum to the King at Abingdon Bridge and were safely inside a local pub.

Graffiti Cleaned from Historical Mural

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The mural in the Stratton Way underpass — depicting episodes from Abingdon’s history — has been defaced with black spray paint for some time. Today, the underpass was closed off for cleaning.

This evening the black spray paint had been removed. The mural was re-painted in 2007 with an anti-vandal coating, which helps make graffiti easier to clean off without damaging the artwork beneath.

Thanks are due to the Town Council for arranging the removal. One curiosity remains: a patchy white accretion, like hard foam, still clings to parts of the mural. It’s also been there for a while — possibly the result of vandalism or another phenomena.

For now, though, the figures of Abingdon’s past are again clearly visible.

Update on Reservoir Near Abingdon

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There’s a proposal to build a huge reservoir near Abingdon. It would cover farmland, roads and buildings between Drayton, Steventon, East Hanney and Marcham. The road from Steventon to East Hanney would be diverted and farmland and wildlife habitats lost.

This week, campaign groups (CPRE and Safer Waters) who tried to challenge the plan in court were unsuccessful. They are now hoping to take their case to the Court of Appeal.

The reservoir is being promoted as part of the solution to future water shortages. The reservoir would store enough water to supply 15 million people across the South East. But some local people and campaign groups are concerned it will damage wildlife, take away farmland, and change the local landscape and cause flooding.

Earlier this year, after years of local opposition to this and earlier proposals for a reservoir, the rules changed when Steve Reed, the UK’s Environment Secretary, approved the project and made it a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project. That means local councils no longer have the final say. Instead, Thames Water can submit its plans to the Planning Inspectorate. After a public review, a government minister would then decide whether the project can go ahead.

The full planning application is likely to go to the Planning Inspectorate in 2026. If approved, construction could begin in 2029, and the reservoir could be ready from around 2040.