Keith Penfold, an expert on the history of the iconic 2CV, revealed in his presentation how the much-loved 'Deuche' almost never existed. How dull the world would be without the charming curves and bright colours of this little car. Keith himself was enraptured at the tender age of 8 by the sound of it's gentle purr while on a family holiday in France. The car's development was beset by problems including two bankruptcies which were a result of the manufacturers investing more in design and engineering than cost control. The car's debut was delayed by the outbreak of war and prototypes were hidden away from the occupiers in strange places including a loft where they were only recently discovered. The reason for the vehicle's success, I felt, lay in the questionnaire which was designed during development to find out exactly what people wanted in an affordable vehicle in terms of capacity, load and speed. I'm not sure whose idea it was to have removable bench seats that could be set up for picnicking on the roadside but we do know that the French like to eat their midday meal in style wherever they might be. Our thanks go to Keith for his fascinating talk. 24/10/2023 Another baguette is toast...Your intrepid windowdressers have struck again with another colourful display in the town centre estate agent. Penny and Kathleen gathered items to illustrate our varied programme for the year and arranged them artistically to delight passersby and tempt them to join our first meeting of the season. Sadly after several weeks in a south-facing window the baguette is more suited to cricket than le gouter.27/8/2023 Sacrifice and RemembranceOn 9 June we welcomed back Jeremy Prescott as our speaker. Jeremy last visited two years ago when he held us enthralled with his research into the life story of Violette Szabo. On this occasion we heard an overview of how a strategy was developed to afford dignity to those that died in times of war and to ensure that their families are able whenever possible to know where they lie. We discovered who were the main players in designing the methods of commemoration that are now so familiar to us but which had to be invented in response to the losses during the Great War. Jeremy described how it was decided and agreed that the crosses and headstones marking the graves of the dead should be identical for all irrespective of rank. The numbers of casualties in some of the conflicts that Jeremy talked about were hard to comprehend and so he also described the impact on some individual families. We understood how those left at home to raise children alone also suffered during war. Cercle members and visitors asked numerous questions which Jeremy was able to answer in detail. He also offered to help trace the grave of a relative. The photographs that Jeremy had taken on his travels were sobering and we could see the simultaneous austerity and beauty of the cemeteries that are maintained by volunteers around the world. We are grateful to Jeremy for a moving and thought provoking evening. 2/7/2023 Merci TimJudy popped a bottle of chilled (non-alcoholic) Prosecco to mark the last meeting of the conversation group at Greyfrairs in June. Kathleen presented Tim Robins with a card and gift on behalf of the group and the Committee to thank him for the entertaining and educational evenings that we have enjoyed over the years. We will all miss Tim's very gentle way of correcting our basic errors but not everyone will miss those short but fiendish dictations! Some students will be joining Tim's regular local classes which are listed on his website Fantastique French Tuition
5/6/2023 The woman who gave us the LBD!The May meeting of Cercle welcomed Steve Herra to talk about Coco Chanel, iconic couturière, parfumeuse and all-round successful business woman of the 1920s and 30s till her death in 1971 . She lead a colourful life as the lover of several well-connected men, notably the Duke of Westminster and a German diplomat - which led to her being charged as a collaborator.
Some of our members went the extra mile to enter the spirit of the evening by wearing the LBD* with which Coco Chanel was synonymous. *Little Black Dress! 28/4/2023 Hostess extraordinaireIn 2022 Penny achieved her long-held ambition to be a hospitaliere for pilgrims on one of the four routes through France towards the Spanish leg of the Camino de Santiago. Her tale was full of adventure from the tricky role-play scenarios during her training course to the deluge that struck the Refuge de Bouzais (a converted stable block) on her first night in residence and her attempts to seal the windows. We soon understood how Penny's resourcefulness was fully called upon daily as she welcomed, fed (on a shoestring), and sorted out a string of pilgrims and their problems. Her pilgrims, as she likes to call them, came from several countries and were bound by a common mission but their challenges were many and varied from blisters to broken bicycle paniers to forgetfullness. With a little bit of free time during the day Penny was able to explore some of the local area on her bicycle including the RHS gardens of Orsan Priory. She described the best moment of the day when each cohort of guests compared notes around the dinner table in the evening. We were full of admiration for Penny on her two week tour of duty. We can only imagine how delighted the pilgrims and nearby village neighbours must have been with meeting surely their most charming host to date.
11/4/2023 Taking care of the pilgrimsAhead of Penny's talk about hosting walkers on the French route to Santiago last year we have decorated a window in the town centre to intrigue passersby and entice visitors to the next meeting of Cercle. The window, which is made available to local groups by the commercial estate agent, is between the florist and the new post office near Friday's Cross. Penny has included in the display some of her souvenirs from her own bicycle pilgrimage. The scallop shell, associated with St James, has become the world wide symbol for the Camino. Do let us know if you like the display.
30/3/2023 Thank you to BarbaraWe were delighted to present our outgoing Treasurer, Barbara, with a token of thanks for her sterling ten year's of service to keep us in the black. Incoming Chairperson Richard presented the bouquet at our recent AGM.
On 11 November, a fitting date, journalist and author Sonia Purnell enthralled us with the story of Virginia Hall the American agent who risked her life going undercover in France. Sonia's determination to find out as much as possible about a woman who never spoke about her activities resulted in some astounding detective work. Sonia travelled to France and America following in Hall's footsteps and used every method available to try to understand how Hall operated and what drove her. On her first mission for the SOE Hall posed as an American journalist and was able to send code messages in the stories she filed. Later, when her cover was blown, she returned to France for the OSS disguised as a French peasant woman. She organised supplies for the French resistance fighters and helped captured agents escape from jail while always avoiding being compromised by other agents whom she regarded as too careless. Sonia told us just enough about 'the limping lady' to ensure we were intrigued to read her book (published by Virago) and her supply quickly sold out. She has also published a children's version entitled 'Agent most wanted' and is working on the upcoming film adaptation. Thanks go to our Secretary Penny for inviting such a riveting speaker.
28/9/2022 September 28th, 2022What could be better than sitting comfortably in a velvet chair at the Regent Centre in Christchurch whilst being taken on a tour of an art exhibition? Cezanne - Portraits of a Life will be shown at 2.30pm on Sunday 4 December 2022. It is timed to coincide with a new exhibition at Tate Modern. Read more here https://exhibitiononscreen.com/films/cezanne-portraits-of-a-life/
The lesser known artist who was patron and friend to the impressionists, Mary Cassatt, is the subject of the next film at 2.30pm on Sunday 12 March 2023. Mary Cassatt - Painting the modern women is being shown for international women's day. and you can read more about the show here https://exhibitiononscreen.com/films/mary-cassatt/. Tickets for these screenings are £11.00. Contact the Regent Centre to book on 01202 499199. |
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November 2023
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