Chairman's Newsletter - August 2023
Friday 11th August 2023
Dear Members,
At last, we see the sun again! When I wrote the last newsletter, we were having sweltering weather. Little did I realise that it would be followed by such awful grey skies, wind and rain!
Fortunately, the 360-degree tour in July took place on a beautiful evening and it was a great success. The new location on the Pavilion Roof gave far reaching views over the Solent and of the grounds of Osborne.
To see photos of the evening please click on https://friendsofosborne.org//content/119/2023_360_Degree_Tour/
However, we were not so lucky with our Drinks on the Terrace event. The decision to cancel was the correct one as on the evening of August 5th the weather was foul. All members who booked were informed and will be refunded. As a committee we were surprised with the small uptake on this event and we are thinking of alternatives. Many members remember this event very fondly but with the new restrictions placed on Osborne with safeguarding the Royal Collection we are not able to hold events on the Upper Terrace as in past years. Also, the cost of £35 per head may have deterred members from booking but costs for EH supplying the food have always been expensive.
In the near future we will be asking for the opinions of members on the events we hold and asking for ideas of what events they might like us to organise. We have so many new members joining each month and we would love to know what they and also our established members would like us to organise. A possible idea is to hold a monthly lunch or tea in the Terrace Restaurant on a Friday so members could get together for a chat. We could try to coordinate this with a visit to the new amalgamated library.
Our talks continue to be very popular. We had thirty-seven members who came to listen to Mark Earp talk in June about the Royal Children. This was an interesting insight into each of the nine children, their personalities and achievements.
Our next talk is on Tuesday 15th August at 10:00. Emma Hallums and Kirsty Huggett, who are responsible for the Conservation of the Royal Collection will talk about their role as collection conservation assistants and how they care for the collection at Osborne and other sites in the South East. Forty-three members have booked for this talk and there is still time to book a seat.
For more details, please click on https://friendsofosborne.org//content/66/Talk_on_Conservation_of_the_Royal_Collection_at_Osborne/
One of the committee will meet members at the gate at 9:40. POQ will not be open but we ask members to always be checked in by one of the committee at the gate and not go through POQ when our talks start later. We are introducing a new scheme of issuing members with a green lanyard for ‘walks and talks’ when we check them in. These will then be collected in at the end of the event.
All EH staff and volunteers wear lanyards and EH have said this will help them recognise Friends of Osborne members on site and assist them more easily.
We also have a talk on Wednesday, 20th September. Toby, the Head Gardener is giving a talk entitled: ‘Osborne’s Garden – Prince Albert’s Pastime’. Several members have already booked.
For more details, please click on https://friendsofosborne.org//content/70/Talk_on_Osborne_Gardens_-_Prince_Alberts_Pastime/
We are finalising details for our annual Quiz on Friday, September 29th and details will follow shortly.
We also have two other dates for your diary.
Toby’s Trafalgar Day Walk on Friday 20th October.
Eurovins Wine Tasting Evening on Thursday 26th October.
Our AGM is in November and will be on the Thursday, 16th or 23rd.
The shop at Osborne has again arranged for Friends of Osborne members to have a 25% discount in the shop from August 14th to 27th. This is a great opportunity to stock up on some presents or just treat yourselves.
Let’s hope this sunnier weather stays so we are all able to enjoy Osborne. During this really wet weather some of the events Osborne planned for the school holiday such as the Punch and Judy show have had to come inside. Also, the upstairs of Swiss Cottage is now closed and the Royal Collection moved as the roof has been leaking. The repairs to the roof will not start until next Summer. However, we can all enjoy the grounds everyday and members can now visit the House on a Friday.
Kind Regards
Allison Rogers