Museums at Night 2015 – Abingdon Museum

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Museums at Night
Last night, Abingdon County Hall Museum opened its doors from 5pm-9pm for an evening of free entertainment for all.

Performers included:

  • Oxford Horns,
  • Opera Anywhere
  • Ian Miles and The Mulberry Band

Museums at Night
+ Raw Diva, a talented all female dance group from Oxford.
Museums at Night
Raw Diva were raising money for Blue Skye Thinking, a local charity which supports research so that all children diagnosed with brain tumours will have a better chance of survival. It is also one of the charities of Helen Pighills, the new Abingdon Mayor. The other is the Breakaway Club.
Museums at Night
The museum opening was an opportunity to experience the museum in a new light
Museums at Night
and to watch the setting sun from the museum roof.

Mayor Making – Changing of the Guard

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Changing of the Guard
There was a changing of the Guard at the Guildhall this evening. Malcolm Hill carried the Mace into the Mayor Making Ceremony for the final time this evening – having held the Office of Honorary Macebearer since 2003.
Changing of the Guard
Nigel Luker became the new Honorary Macebearer and carried the Mace out of the Ceremony.
Changing of the Guard
Malcolm is seen here after the ceremony. He was presented with a certificate by the outgoing Mayor, Angela Lawrence.

Angela gave Mayor’s awards to the chair of governors of the three state secondary schools in Abingdon:
Lynn Fathers – Fitzharrys
Paul Brooks – John Mason
David Lever – Larkmead

Angela commented that the position of school governor is a far more demanding role these days. Governors are held to account for how their school is performing, and need to come to grips with all kinds of data.

Mayor’s Awards were also given to:
Wendy Barratt – Abingdon Breakaway Club,
Dr Tony Gillman – Abingdon, Didcot, and Wantage Talking Newspaper (DAWN)
Changing of the Guard
The incoming Mayor is Helen Pighills,
Changing of the Guard
and her deputy is Alice Badcock.

The new town council also had quite a few different faces.

Fountain replaced by Flower Container at Roysse Court

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Fountain
The fountain at Roysse Court, created by the Cowley Concrete Company, has been removed.

Abingdonians have told me they remember bridge sections, and large concrete pipes being taken away on lorries from the Cowley Concrete Company – a one time Abingdon industry.
Flower Container
It has been replaced by a flower container from Marcham Road.

The green central reservation on Marcham Road is now considered too dangerous to be regularly watered by town council staff.

Late Easter Egg delivered to Station House

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Late Easter Egg
Mike, the Labour Party Candidate for the Town Centre, won a guess the weight of the Easter Egg at the Gift Centre at Easter. It was 13KG.

He did not want to eat the egg all himself, and decided to see if the people of Old Station House would enjoy it instead.

During electoral purdah he could not invite publicity, or do anything opponents could claim was an electoral bribe, and so waited until today to do the presentation.
Late Easter Egg
While there, I discovered that one of the Station House residents grew up on a farm, and gets great pleasure from looking after the two Station House hens.
Late Easter Egg
You may have seen their eggs advertised in the window.