This poem was sent in to us by one of our readers, Peter Taylor           Warm May morning, pink azaleas alight, never been so bright before, so fiery so soon after winter’s wake (quite late this year). I toast my feet beneath a dodging sun, soaking …

Key workers and members of the local community have stepped up in the past few months throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to provide care and support to those that need it most – and they can now be rewarded with some well-deserved leisure time with their family at Cranleigh Golf & …

When schools in England closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, many teachers had to transfer their curriculum online. For instrumental music teachers, it was possible to continue lessons with relatively little upheaval, using Skype or other means of video call. Some musicians have been teaching in this way for …

Our local MP Jeremy Hunt MP (South West Surrey) is sending out very useful email updates on a daily basis. To receive a daily update from from him, please email huntj@parliament.uk I’m not sure about others, but you may like to contact them as follows: Andrew Griffith (Arundel and South …

The three winning entries in Dorking Halls’ lockdown home music video competition ‘Social Sounds’ have been chosen by the public in an online vote.  The winners, whose videos received the highest number of votes are, in no particular order: singer-songwriter Aaron Norton with his acoustic cover of Oasis’s ‘She’s Electric’; …

Vivian Greene once said that ‘Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning how to dance in the rain.’ O.K., so I’m healthy, my loved ones are healthy, we have food, drink and a house and garden to enjoy and give each other space in. I’m …

Love classical music? This spring, there’s no need to go all the way to London to hear it. At the Leith Hill Musical Festival, you have three fabulous concerts on your doorstep at the Dorking Halls – and with tickets from just £15, it’s much cheaper and more convenient than …

St James Club, Antigua.  As some of you might remember, I went on the holiday of a lifetime last January. Many of you commented on how amazing it looked, how much you all wanted to go, and if I’m honest, the holiday blues from that holiday lasted longer than ever. …

Saturday, 1st February 2020, near Goodwood, Chichester     Remember being 6 years old and your teacher saying: “I’d like you to write a story today about…” Now imagine somebody asking you the same question today. We are all born with imagination and the ability to create new things. Along …

The local community will be coming together to remember loved ones at a Dorking Tree of Light service on Sunday 1 December*. The service will include Christmas carols and readings, and has been jointly organised by the local hospice, St Catherine’s Hospice and St Paul’s Church. . The Tree of …

This lunchtime I was treated to the Metropolitan Guitar Quartet by students at the Department of Music and Media PATS Studio 1, Stag Lane Campus. The quartet features an outstanding young ensemble whose members have individually and consistently been awarded top prizes at some of the worlds  most important guitar …

I had the opportunity to attend the masters performance assessment recital at lunchtime on Wednesday at The University of Surrey. It’s part of the assessment process for the department students, but as the recitals are open to the public it gives the students the opportunity to perform to a live …

Guildford Philanthropy is delighted to announce that Guildford Jazz has today become its latest Corporate Ambassador in a partnership that is a first for Guildford Philanthropy to work with another not-for-profit organisation in an Ambassador role. As part of a broader philanthropic partnership,  Guildford Jazz has agreed to donate all  …

A week’s sea cruise from Malta in June is not a proposition to be immediately spurned. It certainly contains elements of attraction yet also offers reasons to demand caution. While it is getting cheaper, cruising has never exactly been the budget choice and being contained in the middle of the …