What’s On in Abingdon Next Week, and the First Use of the New Town Notice Board

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The new notice board on the Market Place displayed its first posters today, with different notices on each side. It is hoped this will help make local events better known.

The Mayor’s Christmas Party for Over-75s takes place on Thursday 4 December at the Hilton Garden Hotel, though it is probably too late now to get tickets, which were distributed through the Abingdon Information Centre.

On Saturday 6 December, there will be a Craft Market on the Market Place — one of the events that usually relies on its own lamp-post advertising rather than the town notice boards.

Also on Saturday 6 December, in the Roysse Room, Eben Lark will be selling their mix of vintage, home, and garden decorations and furnishings.

At 3.30pm on Saturday 6 December, the Abingdon Concert Band will perform Christmas Day in Concert at St Helen’s Church. Tickets are £10/£8, with under-12s free.

At 7.30pm on Saturday 6 December, the Thames Vale Youth Orchestra will give a concert in the Yolande Paterson Hall at St Helen & St Katharine’s School. The programme includes Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld Overture, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnole, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique). Tickets are £12/£10, with under-16s free.

On Sunday 7 December at 2.30pm, Pavlova Winds will perform Paul Reade’s Cinderella Suite and Jim Parker’s Mississippi Five as part of the Abbey Chamber Concerts series at St Nicolas Church. Tickets cost £12.

On Monday 8 December at 5pm, The Abbey Cinema will show the documentary Rhino, following its collaboration with One Planet Abingdon. The film explores efforts to save one of the world’s most endangered species.

On Tuesday 10 December at 7pm, the Amey Theatre will present a live screening of The Nutcracker from the Royal Opera House — the classic Christmas ballet featuring Tchaikovsky’s music and Julia Trevelyan Oman’s designs.

Crochet Bollards and Surprise Visitor at St Helen’s Wharf

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The bollards along St Helen’s Wharf have once again been topped with crochet tops. Snowmen, robins, and Christmas puddings now alternate along the railings, adding festive interest to this picturesque stretch of the Thames.

Some of the decorations are familiar: last year saw 75 robins and puddings, and the year before 75 puddings – many of which have made a return, joined by the new snowmen.

The display is appreciated by people walking the wharf. Even the river seems to have gained a festive visitor. Among the familiar mallards, a new duck has been seen in recent months: a Red-crested Pochard. It behaves much like the others, paddling over hopefully when people stop and gaze. These exotic birds were originally part of ornamental bird collections, and have escaped and gone native.

Advent Calendar – Day 1 – Adam and Eve

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Most people who opened the first door on their Advent calendar today will have found a picture or a piece of chocolate. But at St Helen’s Church there’s a different kind of calendar.

Each day, a new figure is added to the Jesse Tree, tracing the family line from Adam all the way to Jesus.

Today, Monday 1st December, it began with Adam and Eve — complete with serpent and apple. As the first people in the biblical story, they mark the beginning of humanity and the start of the journey that the Jesse Tree will follow through Advent.

Albert Park Through the Year: November 2025

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One of the stranger sights  was the glow of lights behind the Albert Monument, like a scene from a science-fiction film. These were laser tests ahead of the firework display at Dalton Barracks.

November began mild, but by the end of the first week most deciduous trees had already lost their leaves, helped along by shorter days, wind and rain. Some trees were bare, others had a few leaves left.

The noble oaks however still held their leaves right up to the end of November, after several frosts.

There were several frosty mornings after the middle of the month.

The sun rise on a frosty day is beautiful whether or not anybody is there to enjoy it.

A mini-tractor makes its early-morning rounds, emptying bins, leaving tracks.

The low winter sun casts long shadows from the Albert Monument and from the bare trees.

After a frosty night, there is often a sunny day. Albert Park is a popular walk all year round. The November sun attracts not just the dog walkers and joggers, but walkers without dogs making the most of the semicircle of paths.

With the branches bare, birds are easier to spot as they sing or flit from tree to tree.
Holly berries and the yew cups stand out after other colours fade.