ALL SAINTS CHURCH
PARISHONERS` MEMORIES


My thanks to Geoff Pettit and Richard Cooper, the authors of the book, published in October 1998, "Shrub End Looking Back", for being able to use material from their publication.

In looking through some of records which are held at the local Records Office, it is interesting to note that at a meeting held in the church on 17th September 1845, with the Reverend John Papillon in the Chair, it was resolved:-

1. That the appropriated sittings in the church be (a) the four seats in the chancel and (b) the ten seats in the nave
2. That the remaining seats in the church including to forms in the organ transept be free and unappropriated
3. That of the appropriated seats, the seat in the chancel against the north wall be assigned to the incumbent and the one immediately in front of it be assigned to Olivers Mansion House; that the seat against the south wall in the chancel be assigned to George Henry Errington, Esq. of Lexden Park and that the one immediately in front of it be assigned to the Mansion House of New Olivers belonging to T.J. Turner, Esq., that the seat marked Number 1 in the nave on the south side be assigned to Mr. G. Hart of Shrub End Farm and others. That Number 2 be assigned to Mr John Root of Gosbecks. That Number 3 be assigned to Mr. Benjamin Nott of Shrub Farm and to Henry Wood and of Brickwall Farm. That Number 4 be assigned to Mr. Thomas Robinson of Bottle End, Lexden. That Number 5 be assigned to Mr. Robert Hunt of the Hospital Farm, Stanway and to Mr. James Christmas of New Olivers Farm. That Number 6 be assigned to Mr. William Butcher of Wiseman's Farm, stanway Green and others. That seat Number 7 in the nave on the north side be assigned to Mr. Thomas Grey of Coopers Farm, Lexden and to Mr. William Waymans' house at Bottle End, stanway. That Number 8 be assigned to Olivers Farm. That Number 9 be reserved for assignment hereafter and Number 10 be assigned to Mr Robert Scott of the Bottle End Mill, to Mrs Temperance Biggs of The Berechurch Arms and to Plume Farm, Shrub End, Lexden

This resolution was signed by John Papillon as the Chairman and signed by Mr John S. Dolby, the incumbent vicar, Mr Turner and Mr Root, the churchwardens.

The Parish Players today entertain with pantomimes and concerts, but in looking through the old records, it is found that this has, in fact, been going on for well over a hundred years. For instance (in March 1889) there was a lecture illustrated by a series of photographic views exhibited by means of a magic lantern, delivered in the school-room by the vicar. The subject was 'A Week in Venice'. The vicar not only described the objects of interest to be seen in that city but also the picturesque scenery of the St. Gotthard Line. Later in that year the records tell us that on November 13th the first of a series of Winter Evening Entertainments took place. The performers (whose efforts to interest and amuse were thoroughly appreciated by the large audience) were the Misses Folkard, the Misses Woodward, Miss Lee, Messrs H. Clarke, H. Berry, T.W. Stickney and the vicar. A vote of thanks to the performers was proposed by Mr Folkard, Vice-President of the Reading Room Club. It was hoped that the second of the series would be given on Thursday, 12th December. This, in fact, took place and again was a successful evening. After the service commemorating the forty-fifth anniversary of the consecration of the church in April 1890, there was entertainment and after a few remarks from the vicar, a selection of music, vocal and instrumental was performed by the Misses Egerton-Green, Miss Lee, Messrs H. Berry, H. Clarke, Grimwood, Mottem and Pentney, while some amusing readings were given by the Reverends Crate and Gwynne. The Irish Tales recited in their true brogue by the latter gentleman provoked roars of laughter. It seems that regular concerts during the summer ware also held in the vicarage garden. These concerts and other events took place before the time of radio or television and, in a small community such as Shrub End there was obviously quite a lot of talent and people of that day made their own entertainment which, no doubt,was very enjoyable.

On Easter Day in 1889 there were 68 communicants at three different services. The offertories amounted to £23-5s-8d and were presented to the vicar as an Easter offering. The sum of 12 shillings, however, was collected on Good Friday and forwarded as a donation to the House of Mercy at Great Maplestead (this obviously shows that charity began at home). The church was decorated for the Easter Festival with much taste by various lady parishioners who, together with friends, provided the flowers, and were thanked by the vicar. At Harvest Festival in the same year, the church again was prettily decorated, an abundant supply of flowers, fruit and vegetables being furnished by the parishioners. The flowers and fruit were sent to the hospital for the use of the patients after the Festival. The musical art of the service was rendered by the choir who on the Thursday evening were assisted by a number of friends from Colchester. The anthem was Weldon's "O Praise God in His Holiness". The offertories amounted to £4-14s-0d and were divided between Colchester Hospital and The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Society. It is interesting to note that on July 24th 1898, which was the Sunday School anniversary, the sermon was preached by the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould, who was the Vicar of East Mersea, and was quite famous for writing the hymn "Onward Christian Soldiers and the book "Mehalan". Again, referring to the records, also in the year 1889, it was reported that The School Inspection has taken place and we are able to inform our readers that the scholars did very well in their examination and that the Master was commended for the good discipline and general state of efficiency which he has succeeded in establishing during the past six months. The number examined was sixty; the percentage of passes - 86.6. This compares very favourably with the results of the preceding year examination when the percentage was only 50. In another report later in the year it states The School has, through the energy and ability of the present teacher, been much improved in both discipline and attainment. Special pains have been taken with the handwriting, spelling and arithmetic. The work is on the whole fairly good; singing is fairly good, and so is the needlework; discipline is good. The infants class is fairly well instructed in the elementary subjects, singing and recitation. In September of the same year, obviously reported in the Parish Magazine, the day school re-opened after the summer holidays on Monday, September 16th. The porch has been enlarged, in order to provide better accommodation for caps, bonnets, etc. in accordance with the recommendation of H.M. Inspector of Schools. The number of scholars in attendance is unusually large, and it is hoped that the present weekly average may be maintained throughout the season.

In 1890 there was in being a Coal and Clothing Club and the Parish Magazine reported "The Coal and Clothing Clubs will be re-opened on Monday, January 6th. As the Clubs are charitable organisations, it is hoped that none but those who belong to the labouring class will avail themselves of their benefits. It is also necessary to limit the number of cards to three in family, except under some special circumstances. The rule of returning money to depositors who are more than two months in arrear with their payments will be strictly carried out. This little entry goes to show people of the present generation how hard life was for many of our forefathers, especially if you had a large number of children, which of course many families did at that time, and had to make ends meet on a farm labourer`s wage. In the early part of the twentieth century the Carter family lived at Bays Mill Cottages. These cottages were situated on the left-hand side of Maldon Road just before Stanway Hall and Stanway Hall Farm. There is still a track beside the large bungalow known as "Springfields" which eventually goes through to Olivers. The cottages were situated in a hollow surrounded by fields and woods and, to say the least, were very isolated. Lilian Carter, who was the oldest of seven children, has very fond memories of her early life there and speaks of them with considerable affection. Her father worked at Stanway Hall Farm and, as was common at that time, the cottage went with the job and was considered as part of his wages. Ethel, now Munson, was the baby of the family and was also born at Bays Mill. They both recall the pleasure, but also the hardship of living in such an isolated spot. Apart from the family next door by the name of Balls, who had eleven children, there were no other neighbours and they were a long way from the main Maldon Road. To get to the cottages you had to walk down a long winding lane, through a wood where the ground was often very wet and when they went to church they would carry their best shoes with them, change into them when they got near the church and hide the dirty ones under a bush until they came out. Ethel remembers being asked at the age of ten to take part in a Christmas play at the church called "The Magic Window". In it she had to be a little girl in bed who wakes up and is taken to look out of a magic window by an old man who was played by the vicar, the Reverend Fenn. The pulpit was the window and together they watched the Christmas story take place below them on the chancel steps. Her older brother, Len, played a shepherd so he could accompany her to and from the church in the dark nights of winter. She said that she had to have her Christmas presents early that year so that she could wear them in the play. Lilian remembers having to go to the nearby spring to get drinking water which was always cold and tasted lovely. Water for washing had to be fetched from the Roman River when the water-butts ran dry and clothes would be rinsed in the river before drying them. Although the cottages were of a reasonable size with three large bedrooms, two living rooms and a kitchen, they had no electricity or gas; lighting was by oil lamps and cooking done on a kitchen range which burned wood or coal.

All the children went to school at Shrub End in Straight Road which was a long walk of at least three miles; long enough in summer but a very long way in the depths of winter. They also had a long way to walk to church which they had to do three times on a Sunday. Lilian loved school but was not so keen on going to church three times in one day. Although not keen at that time, Lilian is still a very regular worshipper at All Saints Church and still rides her bicycle from her house in Wickham Road in Colchester. Ethel Manson also remembers a wind-operated water pump close to their house. This stood over a deep well and pumped water to a tank which was situated in the tower of the old church, now in the Zoo. To reach the cottages from the farm meant that they had to cross the river by a very narrow bridge which for many years had no hand-rail and when it flooded in winter they got their feet very wet. Lilian remembers that when the baker came and the water was too high for him to cross, her mother had a long pole on which she would tie the bag for the bread and then swing it across the stream and never remembers any falling in the water. In the summer they would play in the fields and woods with the children next door and had a very, very happy childhood. A contemporary of Lilian Carter, a Mr Alf Woodrow, one of thirteen children, still lives in 'the village' in a modern bungalow opposite the Social Centre. His grandfather came to Shrub End in 1850 and started a boot and shoe repairer's shop, close to where the Magnolia Garage is today. His father bought a cottage known as Number 16 Shrub End and was on the site of the present Wilkin Court, almost opposite Walnut Tree Way, where Alf was born in 1914. His father was known as Mad Jack Woodrow and ran a horse-drawn carriage/taxi. The cost of driving from Colchester Station to Mersea Island amounted to one shilling (5p). One customer who, on arrival at Mersea, complained about the rough ride he had experienced and told Mad Jack that he would not ride with him again to which he replied "I'll make sure you don't". Alf has two brothers commemorated on the village War Memorial situated close to the church and recently led a one-man campaign to find out whose irresponsibility it was to keep the memorial in a good condition. He even carried out some minor repairs himself. Alf and his brothers were very keen on football and at that time there was a very active local team in which he played together with his brothers. When it was necessary to raise money for the Football Club, Alf wrote to General Towsey who lived at Tollgate House, for his financial help, but in reply received a postcard saying "Sorry, can't help with your F.C.". However, he was more successful in obtaining money from the Digby family who lived at King's Ford and were generous benefactors to the village.

Alf Woodrow has many stories to tell of some of the old village characters - some with rather dubious reputations - and he remembers one boy at school who was caught swearing by the Headmaster, Mr Grimwood, who told him that he would wash his mouth out with soap and chased him all the way up Straight Road, but never caught him. He also remembers the opening of the gravel pit opposite the church in 1925. It would appear that a Mr Hutton, whilst on a trip to Australia, saw sand and gravel being extracted commercially; when he came home he acquired this site and set up in business - copying exactly what he had seen in Australia. Alf`s brother, Claude, became Mayor of Colchester in the Jubilee year of 1977. He did not want to be known as Claude and, in fact, called himself Len. As he had been a Labour Councillor for twenty years, he was made an Alderman. He worked very hard for the people of Shrub End and, in fact. set out a campaign together with a committee which included Vera Curnow and others to, build the present Social Centre replacing the original old Army hut. The money was raised partly through grants but also by selling bricks at £1 per time. It opened in 1970 and has been actively used by the Shrub End residents ever since. He, together with Arthur Jones and Peter Farrington, started the Art Exhibition at All Saints Church in 1985. This has become a regular event each year and has raised many thousands of pounds for the upkeep of All Saints Church. He also did a tremendous amount ot work for the elderly in the parish and quite rightly Alf is very proud of his brother's achievements. June Eldred (who was June Cullum before her marriage) lived in the little brick lodge-bungalow which was part of Walnut Tree Farm. The bungalow-cottage was known as Number 1 Shrub End and was the first house in the village coming from Colchester Mrs Cullum used to walk to Colchester on frequent occasions and did not pass another house until she came to Marylands, which is now an old people,'s home, on the corner of Norman Way with Shrub End Road. At this point in Shrub End Road where Mutton Hall or Berryfields during the war was a blockade of very large square concrete blocks which was often manned by the military and one had to show an identity card before being allowed through into the town. Mavis Simpson, who before her marriage was Mavis Coleman, lived in Straight Road, quite close to the church. Her house was opposite where Baden Powell Drive is now and she says that there was a large cherry orchard which looked beautiful at blossom time and also the ground was covered with a carpet of daffodils. At the rear of their property was a large sand and gravel pit which after many years became the landfill site and is now in the course of being transformed into a woodland area. Her parents came to Shrub End in August 1938 from Croydon and it was quite a culture shock to come from an urban environment to a rural situation. However, she and her family gradually settled into the life of the community. Mavis remembers very well the old Social Centre Hut and the activities of the Women's Institute who were kept particularly busy during the war making jam and knitting comforts for the armed forces. The Women's Institute also had a very good choir and drama group and she also mentions that behind the hut and stretching from the corner of Shrub End Road quite a long distance down Gosbecks Road were allotments. These were used a lot by local families for growing their supplies of vegetables, which were extremely useful during the war when we were all encouraged to "Dig for Victory". Also recollected Mavis was the fact that there was a thriving Mothers' Union branch of which Mrs Wiggins, the vicar's Wife, was the enrolling member and Mavis's mother joined soon after moving into the parish which was a good way of making new friends.

For the young girls of the parish, there was a branch of the Girls' Friendly Society or which Mavis was a member and they used to meet in the Reading Room (the Egerton-Green Institute) which stood at the corner or Gosbecks Road near the church. Their activities included religious instruction and handicrafts. At that time there were only a few private cars so most people walked, cycled or travelled by bus. The service to Colchester was quite good as there was a bus every fifteen minutes, the starting point alternating between Dugard Avenue and the 'Leather Bottle' car-park. It was not unusual for a bus to pick up passengers between stops if they were seen to be rushing to catch the bus and, of course, there was always a conductor to assist. When Mavis started work in 1941 the price of a workman's return to the town was 2 pennies. Also remembered was the fact thet it was quite safe for children to walk the various footpaths in the surrounding countryside and a favourite ramble on Good Friday afternoon would be to go down to Olivers and in the wood pick primroses which were used to decorate the church for Easter Sunday. I can see the paste-pots now around the base or the font and the result was extremely pretty, very rural and village-like.

David Barbour, who now farms at Gosbecks, remembers his father telling him or the time when Lamberts Farm, which was next to Gosbecks, had their own reservoir built during the 1930's. It held about half a million gallons and was the first to be built in this part of the country. Lamberts was owned by the Taylor family and grew mostly vegetables and market garden produce. David Barbour said that his father bought Lamberts in 1954 to replace the ground that they had to give back to the Colchester Borough Council in 1950 for housing. The reservoir still exists as part of the present history park. The shops on the corner of Gosbecks Road with Plume Avenue, which many will remember, were built in the 30's. One was a general store run by a Mr Williams and in 1939 was the only shop listed in the street directory for that year. Mrs Esme Archer, the wife of the late Peter Archer who was a well-known butcher, recalls that when her husband came out of the Army after being wounded during the war, he took over the butcher's shop. In 1952 although Mr Archer was still in business as the butcher, the store which wes run by Mr Williams became Nice the Newsagents. Later on Mr Archer's sister, a Mrs Wood and her husband took over the butcher's shop for a short period and in 1962 the adjoining shop was occupied by a Mr Slowgrove as a hair-stylist and wool shop. The butcher's shop subsequently became Baughan's, a well-known pork butcher in the town, and in 1973 returned as The Archers and Mr Slowgrove wes still in the adjoining shop which was known as Dean Plume Stores, a general store; hairdressers and wool shop. Richard Cooper remembers his parents bought a house in King Harold Road in 1933; they paid £510 for it. Although it was not quite new, it had been lived in by one other family, and the original price was £500 but they had to pay £10 extra because it had a bay window on the first floor. My first recollection of being alive was when I found myself in a pram which had two hoods; I was on a centre seat and on either side of me were two small babies. They were my great friends the twins, Colin and Thelma Brett, who were six months younger than myself. Our mothers took it in turns to look after the other's child or children particularly when they had the Sweep. This was a major event, the room had to be cleared completely and everything was cleaned and polished until it sparkled.

Shrub End in my early youth was really rather a rural community. The road in front of our house was unmade and led to a path through the fields to Lexden. My grandparents who lived in Eight Ash Green used to catch the bus to Lexden Church, walk up Church Lane and through the fields to our house. With great excitement I used to sit in the upstairs bay window of my parents' bedroom and when I saw them coming arm-in-arm through the fields, laden with produce from their extensive garden, I used to rush to meet them. This seems quite incredible today when I look down the road which is quite busy and has a Corporation bus service. The house where I presently live was owned by a Mr Jim Baines who was a retired Lancashire farmer. The house at that time had a field at the rear of about 4 acres and Mr Baines used to keep cows, sheep and chicken it was quite a little smallholding. When we came home from school, I and my friends would call on Mr Baines and he would take us over the fields to the cow-sheds where we watched him milking the cows by the light of a paraffin or hurricane lantern; the smell of the manure and of the animals stays with me to this day. We children used to love to go with Mr Baines who was a very kindly old man with a very strong Lancashire accent. He used the house as a farmhouse and the sitting room in which I am sitting today used to have slop pails, dirty aprons and farm clothes together with the carcases of slaughtered lambs and pigs hanging from the imitation beams. His wife was a very kindly lady who used to sit in a rocking chair in the same room and would churn butter from the milk he obtained from the cows. It was war-time and Mrs Baines used to let us have a pat of butter every now and again which, of course, was a wonderful treat. We were also able to obtain eggs from their free-range chickens. Today the field that they owned is a field full of houses and forms part of the development of Baden-Powell Drive and its tributories. In the 1940's, together with my friends who lived mainly in the King Harold Road area, I joined All Saints Church. The vicar was the Reverend Henry William Wiggins, a tiny bald-headed man who wore gold-rimmed spectacles. His wife was equally small, plump and wore her hair in a neat bun at the back. Her name was Phoebe and, like her husband, was very energetic but both of them lacked any sense of humour. They were, however, devoted to the church and worked very hard for the people of the parish. Mr Wiggins drove a maroon-coloured Morris 8 saloon and also rode a bicycle. He was at the same time vicar of St. Michael's, Berechurch as well as the Vicar of our parish. He was, I suppose, about my age now and very set in his ways (like me). He was extremely high church (not like me) and at services there was much bowing and deference. He would bob up and down in the pulpit when delivering a sermon and you could just see his head above the brass lectern and the candlelights which were there at that time.

I soon joined the choir and spent several happy years attending church at least twice on Sundays. The choir-master was a Mr Robert Glenn, a quiet "English gentleman" who lived in Layer Road with his Aunt Alice and an uncle who was deaf and dumb and called Chummy. Mr. Glenn would cycle to church for services and also choir practices. Miss Glenn had been a launderess as a young Woman and washed and starched our surplices and goffered our white collars. The choir was always beautifully turned out with freshly laundered surplices for special occasions. Our pay was five shillings (now 25p) per quarter and we received this sum only if we had attended every service. The choir vestry is where the organ is now and was rather like a horse-box. It had no roof and, therefore, it was important that we were quiet before the service in order not to disturb the congregation. This, of course, was an impossible task and we were continually being reprimanded. Every year Mr Glenn gave us a treat by taking us to Brightlingsea by train. After swimming in the pool or boating lake one year, we were taken to a small restaurant for a sea-food tea which consisted of cockles and mussels. I was obviously allergic to these and on my return home was violently ill. The very sight of shell-fish today reminds me of this occasion and I steer very clear of it. At Christmas we were invited to 102 Layer Road for a lovely tea party. The table was beautifully set with a starched white damask cloth, covered with home-made cookies and everything was done to perfection. At that time our choir belonged to the Royal School of Church Music and we wore scarlet cassocks and had the honour of joining other choirs in a combined service in St. Paul's Cathedral. We went the day before for a rehearsal and on the day appeared in our finery for the service. A wonderful experience which I shall always remember and, of course, the train journey itself was a great treat. The highlight of our year was the church fete which was held either in the large vicarage garden or in the gardens of Greystones. This function was a truly English Village event. You dressed up for the occasion, had a cream tea with strawberries and then purchased some home-made jams, chutneys or needlework. Mr Wiggins always had a target to raise £100 but, unfortunately, never quite realised this magic figure, although sometimes it came close to it. Early in the New Year a parish party was held in 'The Hut'. The church party WaS by invitation only and unless you had been coming to church regularly, you were not invited. It was a subdued but pleasant affair and the Reverend and Mrs Wiggins were Host and Hostess. As you can imagine, no alcoholic drinks were served!! You should realise that at this time Shrub End was very much a village.

There were two main village shops almost opposite one another in Shrub End Road one, the Post Office, was quite close to the 'Leather Bottle'. It stood right on the road - a very old single storey building with a cream painted weatherboard exterior and tiled roof. This was owned by the Goody family and their two daughters ran the businesss. It was an absolute paradise for a child with toys and sweeties, but it was a complete and utter muddle and very hard for the customers (or the owners) to find what you were looking for to buy. Mrs Morris and her Magnolia Tree - the other shop had a nice cottage garden with a wonderful magnolia tree which bloomed in profusion each Spring hence Magnolia Garage which is built on the site. At the end of the war, the first oranges and bananas arrived. We children had never seen these before and clutching our ration books, we waited in anticipation only to find that many had gone bad. Mrs. Morris was not perturbed and with a sharp carving knife she cut out the bad bits and sold the good pieces to us. We did not complain and the taste of the first orange and banana was wonderful. As has been mentioned before, the Reverend Dick Darby and his family arrived in 1953 like a rushing mighty wind and changed Shrub End beyond recognition. He decided that we should hold a Harvest Supper and it was held in a marquee in the vicarage garden and, again, was very much a village occasion. We sat on bales of straw and had bangers and mash. Dick was the life and soul of the party; he dressed up and entertained us with ditties and music. Shrub End was coming to life after a long, long sleep.

Many organisations started to form in Shrub End and one of these was the 34th Colchester (1st Shrub End) Scout Group. This was registered in 1936 but apparently it did not survive the war years. The Group re-formed in 1948 as a Cub Pack sponsored by Shrub End Congregational Church, Mr & Mrs Steggles being the leaders. However, in 1951, it reverted to being an Open Group and moved to meetings in the Shrub End's Social Centre. The next year the Scout Troop started, it's leader being Vin Hands, who was prevailed upon by Mr and Mrs Steggles to become the scoutmaster as he wanted his son to join the Cub Pack. In 1957 the Cub Pack split in two and in the early 1960's the group was led by G.S.M. Vin Hands and CMs, Mrs B. Askham and Les Lamb. The Troop has always been active in the district and county events and camping both at home and abroad - in Holland, Germany and Belgium. In 1963 the group purchased a hut from the Army and its erection began in 1964 when John Taylor was Scoutmaster. The official opening followed in 1968 after much hard work, Vin Hands resigned to become D.C. of East District in 1973 and Les Lamb became ADC Cub Scouts, Mrs Askham having taken over the 30th Colchester Pack in 1966. The Scout hut still stands today on part of what was originally the old vicarage garden in Shrub End Road.

In July 1958 a Young Wives Group attached to the parish church at Shrub End started a drama group. The vicar, the Reverend Dick Darby, produced a play "Stand by your Medical" for entertainment at a Harvest Supper. Two members of the cast, Muriel Jones (then Underwood) and Ethel Munson are still members of the Shrub End Parish Players today in 1998. In January 1959 another play followed - "The Bus Stop". Dick Darby, of course, left in 1959 and Maurice Underwood took over to produce a revue for Chriatmas 1960. This proved to be so successful that outside engagements were accepted. The performer were now known as Shrub End Young Wives Entertainment Group. The new vicar, the Reverend Laurence Reading, asked for a show to be staged to support the Church Bells Fund in 1961. The revue was unnamed and repeated in April in aid of the Spastics Society. The final item was called "HMS Seyweg", a nautical scene, the title coming from the initial letters of the Group's name. In 1963 a Passion Play was produced by Brian Dowrick for the first time; others were to follow. A local gentleman, Cecil Elliott, wrote songs and played for the Group. When one or two men joined the ladies Group it was thought the name should be changed to Shrub End Parish Players - now with Vic Shepherd, Arthur Jones, Cecil Trovell, Ken Steward, etc, taking part. Les Clayden and his his wife joined the players as the resident pianist and assistant. Throughout the next few years one act plays and the annual Passion Play were performed. Various producers including Sylvia Mitchell, Gwen Flower, the Reverend Stanley Brown, the Reverend David Streeter, were on hand to guide the productions. One or two revue-style shows were staged, such as Revue 75, individual items in the first half, a scene of songs from "Oliver" with young Mark Elliott in the name part and Happy Hoedown for the whole of the second half. Sheila May produced and Gerry Pettit painted the backcloths. The first pantomime was called "Colchesterella" - written and directed by Sheila May. This was in 1977 with a repeat the following year. Then from 1980 a pantomime every year, starting with "Aladdin" through to the recent "Ali Baba and Forty Thieves with no fewer than 170 different people being involved in the eighteen productions.

In 1974 All Saints Church badly needed redecorating and the churchwardens, Arthur Jones and Peter Farrington - set about the task of redecoration, the first time for many years. With the free loan of scaffolding from a local firm and a small band of helpers, they worked whenever time allowed and it took about 24 weeks to complete. The church looked sparkling and, in spite of the scaffolding, services still took place on Sundays. The Reverend Charles Goulding was the vicar at that time and had been in contact with an elderly lady, Jenny Simpson (nee Morris) who was the owner of the general store which stood on the site of the Magnolia Garage. She was anxious to leave a memorial for herself, her husband and her family and, in fact, left the proceeds from the sale of her bungalow to the church for the purpose of building an extension to the original building. This was carried out after her death but owing to the poor state of the church roof, the vicar asked if some of the bequest could be used for its repair. However, the terms of the Will prevented this and, therefore, the extension was built before the roof was repaired. This was not the first extension to the church as a new choir vestry was built in 1958 and replaced a wooden structure in the main body of the church where the organ now stands. It can be said that it's an ill wind that blows no good. In 1987 there was one of the worst hurricanes that the area has ever known and this caused considerable damage to the church. including the loss of several large trees in the churchyard and also the roof. By the generosity of the insurers, not only was the roof replaced but new carpets and redecoration was carried out. The Reverend Derek Cowie succeeded the Reverend Charles Goulding as vicar and stayed in the parish for eleven years, leaving in 1995. During his incumbency, some alterations were made which proved a little controversial. The nave altar was installed; the old organ was removed and he himself reconstructed an organ from another church which was a much finer instrument and was installed at the west end of the building. The old organ chamber was transformed into a vestry for the clergy. The present vicar is the Reverend Christopher Newlands who was installed in October 1996. Being a young and energetic man, he has brought new life to the church. His keen interest in music has made a considerable difference to the choir and to the music for the services. He has also been responsible for introducing us to his friends who have generously shared their talents with us in the form of concerts, both in the church and in the vicarage garden, which bave helped to raise funds for the benefit of the church. In particular, Mr. Eugene Ginty, has sung on several occasions at church services - especially at Christmas when he rendered "O Holy Night" at the midnight service.




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