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80th Theale Show 2024 – Every Year Since D-Day!

A local committee of volunteers has been organising an Annual Flower Show in the village of Theale, on the first Saturday in September, since just after D-Day in 1944.

When the ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign was announced, Burnett Champney, a local cider maker and landowner, started the Theale Flower and Fruit Show. His wife Flossy provided meals for guests and competition Judges, which they ate with her own best silver service. Archie Gibbs
recruited the Burtle Silver Band to march through the village to open the Show.

This year it is our 80th Anniversary! It is a remarkable community effort by locals every year, notwithstanding storms in 1984 which blew the marquee away, the funeral of Princess Diana in 1997, foot and mouth disease in 2001, and torrential rain in 2008; still known by locals as the Mud Bath Year.

The show provides a showcase for locally grown produce, flowers, arts and crafts, but
also draws our rural villages together with a day of fun and activities for the whole family
in the Village Hall, and the beautiful orchard gifted to the village by a local resident, Ann
Bodley.

This fantastic event has brought together people for generations. The traditional and popular Flower Show has over 120 competition categories for flowers, fruit, local produce, arts, crafts and photography. There will also be a dog show, initiated long ago by Tony Rewston, which always generates enormous interest.

Activities for kids this year will include a Fancy Dress Parade and Competition, Pirate Treasure Hunt, face painting, arts, crafts and games. For adults there will be traditional games including a Tug of War, a Human Fruit Machine and much more.  The evening events include our ever-popular pop-up Bar – the ‘Green Man’ – and live music from the very talented Joe Strouzer, and the fantastic Swamp Stomp String 12 August 2024 Band. Somerset cream teas will be served during the afternoon in the Hall, and Wood Fired Oven baked pizzas available throughout.

It is a fantastic day which does a huge amount to bring our small rural community together. This is particularly important in these times when the rural economy is under such pressure. In post-Covid times, the cost-of-living crisis, and following widespread flooding, those of us living in the shadow of the beautiful Mendip Hills will really welcome a family day of fun, showcasing our community’s resilience, and displaying the best of our country life in this blessed place.

The Show gates will open to the public from 2.00 pm, on Saturday 7 September,
with the formal Opening at 2.30 pm by BBC Radio Somerset’s Claire Carter. Go to
www.thealeshow.com for details about the show and to register your competition
entries. If you have any questions contact the Show Secretary, Cathy Butterworth,
on 01934 806157, cb@theconsultant.org Andy Hall

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