The Carnival week Fun Fair opened its rides for the first time this evening. Attendance seemed pretty low, but, we can confirm that lots of fun can be had should you decide to go along. The fair is on for the rest of the week at Ilminster recreation ground.
Places to eat in Ilminster include:
DISCOVER ILMINSTER: St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Station Road, Ilminster, Somerset. Sunday Mass: 5.30 pm. Holy Days: 6.00 pm. Confessions: Before Mass. Telephone: 01460 62197. Other Places of Worship - Church of England Minster Church; Methodist Church; Quakers - Religious Society Of Friends.
As part of Ilminster Carnival Week many stores in the town are taking part in a Shop Window Competition. The photograph above of one such window appears to be a hit with younger shoppers.
NEWS - Station Road was resurfaced today! Due to the current loose and sticky surface there is a 20 mph speed limit. Very few drivers, however, seem to be taking much notice. A picture above.
UPCOMING EVENT - Donyatt Bumper Book Fair, at Donyatt Village Hall, near Ilminster. Saturday 17th October. 10am to 4pm. Refreshments available. Free entry. Proceeds to the St. Mary's Church roof appeal.
Legion of the Stag medieval re-enactment society staged an historical reenactment in Ilminster Market Square yesterday afternoon. The crowd was treated to a display of Arthurian style sword fighting by four or five people in full medieval dress. Watch a video of the sword-fighting!
Yesterday marked the start of Ilminster Carnival week, and proceedings got off to a splendid start with a well attended Childrens Carnival. Above is a photograph of Keira, this year's 11 year old Carnival Princess, being chauffered regal-style at the front of the childrens carnival procession. Each year the Carnival Committee select a new Carnival Princess based on how much sponsorship was collected by applicants. Money raised going to local charities.
We recently acquired an old engraving dating back to the 1870s of Dillington House, just outside Ilminster. Compare the engraving with the photograph of Dillington to the right taken earlier today.
Parts of Dillington House date back to the 16th Century and the house is often described as one of the finest and most beautiful houses in Somerset. Indeed, Dillington features in Simon Jenkins’ book England’s 1000 Best Houses. Steeped in history, Dillington House was formerly the country residence of George III's Prime Minister, Lord North. It has now been owned for many years by Somerset County Council and is put to a number of uses, including adult education centre and upmarket wedding and conference venue.
The now extended closure of the footpath linking the shoppers car-park behind the Co-Operative store in the centre of Ilminster to the shop itself is something of an inconvenience, especially given the usual difficulty in parking in that part of the town. According to one store worker the closure is due to safety concerns over the 'repointing' work taking place on the old court building. Let us hope that those concerned pull their fingers and get on with the work or perhaps just provide a covered area, so that shoppers can continue to use the footpath and help lessen the never-ending parking problems in the street itself.
Quite by chance I came across a fascinating personal website written by someone who lived for five months at Donyatt Hill, in the village of Donyatt, near Ilminster, during the early 1960s. Check it out here!
A chicken farmer who breeds chickens to produce eggs wants to find homes for 800 birds that supermarkets say are too old to lay eggs for their stores.
As promised - a photograph of Market Square in Ilminster as it looks today. Compare with the old postcard in the previous post. Cars, cars, cars ... and more cars.
On Monday night two balaclava-wearing robbers armed with shotguns, threatened staff and demanded keys to a safe at a Little Chef roadside restaurant at the service area at the Southfields Roundabout just outside Ilminster. When workers told them they did not have the keys they left the restaurant. No-one was hurt and nothing was taken. The men were described as in their 20's and about 5ft 9in (1.7m) to 6ft (1.8m) tall. They are reported to have spoken with northern accents. They are believed to have driven away in a vehicle they had left parked beside the A358, which is behind the services in the direction of Taunton. Police are appealing for information.
A photograph taken this morning of a couple of the stalls at the open air market held in Ilminster every Thursday. The Co-op food store can also be seen and if one looks carefully the George Hotel featured in the previous post. Click on the image to see a larger version of the same image.
Here we have an old picture postcard of the George Hotel and Post Office in the centre of Ilminster, Somerset. The postcard and image date from around 1905. The photograph below shows the same part of the town taken this morning. Thursday is market day in Ilminster, but, with the showers and lower temperatures today there were fewer people than usual out and about. My next post includes a view of the market area and the Co-operative food store.
