Saturday 13th September was the first of our Autumn events at Oxham Hall, and, as we've come to expect, it was a well supported Quiz Night & Supper with seven teams enthusiastically taking part.

The evening was hosted by our popular quiz master Mike.

The first three rounds got underway and there was an atmosphere of almost silent concentration. Half way through the proceedings there was a much-needed supper break for Sam's Pasties with beans or salad on the side, followed by a cheese board with grapes. .

The winning team (Brian, Jenny, Graham, Giles, Angela and Anneke) were thrilled to win the Oxham Hall Quiz trophy (and a huge box of Heroes) with 38/50 points - 3 points ahead of the runners up.

The evening was organised by committee members Jilly, Liz and Marilyn. Huge thanks to Marilyn's husband Steve for his help as stand-in barman, waiter and clearer-upper!

A total of £358.58 was raised and will be allocated to the fund set by for installing an acoustic system which enables anyone with impaired hearing to be able to hear clearly whilst attending a function at the hall.

NB

This was our first event held at the hall since we have lost three wonderful and very special women who sadly passed away within weeks of each other. They are Barbara Hollingsworth, Ruth Govier and Den Smith. All three gave so much to our community and their lovely presence amongst us will be so very missed.

RIP dearest Barbara, Ruth and Den XXX

It is with immense sadness that we share the news that Ruth Govier, our much loved friend and chairman of Oxham Hall, passed away at the end of August 2025.

Ruth's very special presence will never fade in our memory or our hearts. She truly was a wonderful person who could light up a grey day by just being there. She was so very appreciated and cherished by her family and friends. Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to Philip and all her family.

Rest in peace dear Ruth. You will be so very missed by everyone who had the good fortune to know you.

The annual Great Duck Race is a sporting highlight at Oxham Hall and is held at the annual Summer Family and Friends BBQ. This year the event was held on Sunday 27th July. The committee pulled out all the stops and catered for over 50 people. Wendy coordinated the shopping and food preparation along with Barbara and Marilyn in the kitchen. Nigel was BBQ Chef, Martin and family ran the bar, Kate and family ran the duck race and Lorna and Liz ran the tombola and raffle respectively. Everyone on the committee produced a pudding and there was a choice of delicious pavlovas, trifles and a cheese cake. Thank you to everyone who contributed their time and skills.

The proceeds from the Duck Race were split 50/50 between St Mary's church in Mariansleigh and Oxham Hall - each receiving £111.00. The proceeds from the BBQ went to Oxham Hall funds and came to £691.00. The Hall received £802.00 in total, which will go a long way to the maintenance of the building. The committee wish to thank everyone who came along to support us and contribute to what was a lovely, fun afternoon.

Saturday 28th September was Quiz Night at Oxham Hall, an evening eagerly anticipated by everyone who came along. Quizzers are known for their keen-as-mustard minds, sharpish reactions and a tendency to whisper... just a little bit too loudly. The evening was expertly managed by our highly regarded Quiz master Mike. Slick and efficient as always, with absolutely no expense spared, Mike provided two sheets of A4 for each team to use. One was just a list of numbers but the other had full colour pictures of US presidents, dog breeds, TV presenters and tree leaves. Think University Challenge meets Mastermind via Pointless, and you'll have a general idea of the edge-of-the-seat anticipation amongst the contenders.

Having a bar helped to calm what felt like 11+nerves and half way through the proceedings there was a much-needed supper break for Sam's Pasties and a cheese and grapes board to pick on. Huge thanks to Ruth Govier and Jilly Watson for organising that.

The outright winners turned out to be the (now slightly smug) team who won last year - Tim, Anne, Lin, Eric, Sue and Kevin. Everyone enthusiastically conveyed their congratulations to them.

The rest of us are going to have to work on stepping up our game for the next quiz on Saturday December 14th. Let's see if someone can stop that winning team getting a hat trick!

On Friday 20th September the annual Mariansleigh Parish Harvest Supper was held at Oxham Hall. The evening began with an informal thanksgiving service, led by Reverend Alison Rogers, who encouraged everyone to sing 'acapella' - and so everyone did - filling the hall with the sound of gloriously tuneful and enthusiastic voices.

Supper followed the service which was prepared and served by Wendy Sing and her fabulous team of friends and helpers. The two-course meal was a delicious feast, not least because the home-made desserts were spectacularly good! There was a very difficult choice to be made between Chocolate Profiteroles, Sticky Toffee Pudding, a rich Chocolate Cake, Raspberry Cheesecake and a Summer Berry Pavlova. Unsurprisingly, second helpings were very popular and a fair few diets went to the wall.

Richard Govier stepped up to the role of auctioneer for the Produce Auction, and thanks to his ingenious sales patter, the donated fruits, vegetables, cakes and jars of homemade chutney raised a very satisfying amount. Someone did say that Richard could have a successful second career on a TV Shopping channel.

Thank you very much to everyone who came along and contributed to the laughter and truly great atmosphere. A very special thank you goes to everyone who pitched in and contributed food, harvest produce and their own time to this popular annual event.

The evening resulted in a magnificent profit of £689.00, which will be donated to The Church of St Mary, Mariansleigh.