Things we do in the club
Banbury Cross players put on a production of Cinderella for our pantomime entertainment. The production, written by a member of their company, starred our very own Helen as the Fairy Godmother, allowing her to utter the famous words ‘Cinderella – you shall go to the ball!’
We have been meeting up with Banbury Phab for 42 years, but have not seen them since their Halloween disco in 2019. Thirteen of us (an ominous number for a spooky night) went in our minibus to Banbury, where we were made welcome with hot dogs and Halloween themed snacks.
Several Phab members, both from Oxford and Banbury, had put a lot of effort into seasonal costumes, and one of our members was awarded first prize for her costume with green face paint, and real ivy. Helen, our chairperson, was looking very witchy with her blue wig, witches hat and Hogwarts gown.
We also had a selection of terrifying accessories…
The main event of the evening was a magician, who performed some incredible tricks, even more amazing as we, the audience, had a view from the sides as well as in front of him, as he made things appear and disappear, chopped up and restored a piece of rope and borrowed, and eventually returned – intact – items such as a watch, a mobile phone, a signed ten pound note, and a ring, from members of the audience.
What could be better on a Friday the thirteenth than watching a Horror Movie ?
Watching a musical with your Phab friends, and various toy sheep (some of them are not that keen on horror films)
and eating burgers and hotdogs (veggie sausages available!).
George Martini and his Zumba Instructor friends kindly laid on a Zumba session for us from 11am until 12:30 – a morning of high energy activity which sped by. Phab members, friends and supporters paid £10, came and danced and had a great time and raised over £300.
Afterwards we were able to restore the burnt-off calories with home made coffee cake, courgette and poppy seed buns and tea or coffee.
We were also delighted to be joined by one of our original members, and had an opportunity to chat and reminisce.
Sometimes we serve refreshments in the John Wesley Room of Wesley Memorial Church, raising money for club funds. This time the church was open as a historic building, as part of the Oxford Preservation Trust Open Doors Weekend.
Chatting to the many people from all over the world who came to see the beautiful city were we are privileged to meet was a joy, and hopefully some of them will come away with some awareness of Phab and what we stand for. We also raised money for Rainbow House, a drop-in centre for accompanied pre-school children, which also meets at Wesley Memorial.
For our last meeting before we break for Summer we took advantage of having a talented chef amongst our members. Maria made cookie dough, to which we could add a variety of toppings of our choice.
Maria baked them, assisted by Darren, and they emerged from the oven transformed! (and with a delicious aroma)
… and were eagerly eaten!
It was a great night, and we look forward to resuming in September.
Once again the sun shone on the Annual Wesley Memorial Church Garden Party. Many scones were made, and consumed with clotted cream and strawberry jam. In the interests of science both the Cornish method (jam first, cream on top) and the Devon method (cream first and then jam) were tested, and the conclusion ? – More research needed!
The swimming pool was available, as well as impromptu games of football and badminton, and to top off the event a choir sang madrigals.
It was a welcome opportunity for Phab and church members to mingle and chat.
Thanks to many generous donations the event also raised over £500 for Oxford Phab.
We had a very tasty meal at Hinksey Heights Golf Club. Although we were in a marquee the last time we went the weather was unsettled so we ate and chatted in The 19th Hole.
Conversations ranged from Tall Ships to Tall (and not so tall) People, and we got to catch up with some old friends.
Tom and Martha teamed up to give us another interesting and well-balanced quiz. Questions included recognizing biscuits and board games from pictures, some of only a part of the subject – enough for the teams to know they have seen it, but not always enough to be able to identify it.
We play in teams, and it is helpful to have a range of interests on the team, and surprising to find out what members know. We also learnt some things that none of us knew, such as that a sloth takes two weeks to digest a meal, and that the animal which produces cuboid poo is the wombat. We also played a couple of Rebus games, which some members had not encountered, and enjoyed once they caught on to the format.
Although Helen was announced as this year’s winner of the Paul Hope Award in December, as the announcement was done remotely via a video link, she could not receive the certificate which accompanies the award. This was presented to her tonight
We also had a small Coronation Party, in anticipation of tomorrows ceremonies.
Wesley Memorial Church is also a venue for Oxfordshire Art Weeks – with people who use the buildings being invited to create or submit works on a theme of ‘Special Places, Holy Spaces’. This sparked inspiration in some of our members –
It also kicked off some interesting discussion about what made Phab special to its members.
