RO:TORO Concert
Hailing from Estonia RO:TORO had an interesting range of musical instruments. The Estonian Bagpipe was combined with the modern saxophone and a self-made water-bowl percussion instrument. They played traditional Estonian music and a number of thier own original compositons. It is appreciated that a talented group of musicians are able to be seen at small village venues due to sponsorship received from Rural Arts.
80th ANNIVERSARY - WOMEN'S INSTITUTE
The ladies of the Women's Instute had a lunch to celebrate their 80th anniversary at Scarborough Technical College. Established in 1929, the Women's Institute have given an enormous amount of support to village events over the years. Long may it continue and happy anniversary to them.
VILLAGE HALL MEETING
On Wednesday 4th March the village hall committee held their annual meeting. The year proved very satisfactory. Use of the hall has been excellent and the financial statemet was profitable. Chairman Vic Worrall thanked all members for their efforts.
THE DUCHESS
There was another film show in the village hall on Friday 27th February. The Duchess, starring Keira Knightly,was featured. The film became quite a topic of conversation in the village when some viewers saw a little more of Keira than they were expecting! Well done to the village hall committee for bringing another top class film to the village.
TROUBLE IN PARADISE
OK, it may be snowing heavily in Cropton (12th February) but spare a thought for a Cropton resident on holiday in New Zealand. Whilst enjoying a cup of coffee in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand, his chair collapsed, due to the heat melting the glue on the chair, and it left him needing hospital treatment for damage to one of his eyes. Doctor has ordered our resident a long spell in a hammock to help recovery!
MAMMA MIA
Abba mania finally hit the village on Wednesday 28th January. There was a showing of the very successful Mamma Mia film in the village hall. There was a full audience and everyone seemed to enjoy the film very much, although a few eyebrows were raised when Pierce Brosnan was attempting to sing!
ROXXOLID CONCERT
The singing and guitar playing duo called Roxxolid entertained rock fans in the village hall on Friday 16th January. It was a trip down memory lane for many because the band played lots of 60's favourites. Well done to Dennis & Dave for a good night out.
GORBACHEV THE DONKEY GOES TO THE CHRISTMAS CAROL SERVICE
The Church Christmas carol service took place on Sunday 21st December at 3.30 p.m. The churchgoers goes had a real treat when Gorbachev the Donkey turned up to wish everyone a happy Christmas. 2008 Photos here Last year he greeted Father Christmas to the village. See last years photos 2007 Christmas photos
The carol service was candlelit, which provided a great atmosphere. The Lastingham singers attended and sang beautifully to add some Christmas magic. Sherry and Mince Pies were served afterwards.
CHAPEL CAROL SERVICE
Ken and Wendy Allanson made a welcome return to the chapel this year and gave a lovely festive programme to a packed chapel on Friday 19th December. The supper that followed was excellent, almost a feast. Many thanks to all helpers.
THE PEACOCK CHRISTMAS QUIZ
The Peacock Christmas Quiz was held in the village hall on Friday 12th December 2008. First the visitors were served with a lovely Pie & Peas supper. The quiz followed and the The 'Back Lane Babes' (plus one) won. Proving they had brains as well as beauty the 'Babes', Moira Taylor, Pauline Slaughter & Sharon Aconley (plus one) took the main prize. Bring on the Eggheads!
Afterwards Dot Grayson played the keyboard for a Christmas singalong. It was a really good night out! Many thanks to Richard & Pat Peacock and all the many helpers.
Earlier in the evening Santa visited the village, with the help of the Ryedale Lions, raising money for the Yorkshire Ambulance appeal.
LEALHOLM SINGERS
Those that braved the cold weather conditions got a real treat when the Lealholm Singers performed a Christmas programme in the village hall. Plenty of well known Christmas songs were included but there was an added bonus of three songs that had been composed by the keyboard player, Joe. Go and see this excellent choir if you get the chance.
A VILLAGE PANTOMIME
The Heritage Group held their annual review and showed dvd footage from a village Pantomime that was staged in 1995. The group are doing some great work with archive material and showing the old panto was a real success.
WINTER BEER FESTIVAL
The weather was a little cold for the New Inn Winter Beer Festival on the last weekend in November, but good crowds turned out to enjoy the many beers available. There was plenty of entertainment in the form of live bands.
BOWLS MATCH RESULT
The bowls team had their first competitive match when they took on neighbours Middleton in a friendly match at the village hall. It was very close but Cropton claimed a victory.
PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORIES
On Friday 21st November the village hall was the venue for my (Robert Aconley) "Photographic Memories" night. It was a cold night but the evening was very well attended. We had a mixture of old and new photos of mainly the people of the local area. Michael Stephenson contributed some new interesting photos and hopefully we will post some of these on this website. Many thanks to the Heritage Group and to everyone else that helped me. The evening also raised £116 for village hall funds.
WORLD WAR ONE LITERARY LINKS
Local historian, Trevor Boag, gave a very interesting talk to the Heritage Group about the literary links to the First World War. Trevor also mentioned the links of local men, including the local Smithson family, to this war.
ON THE TELLY
The local brewery were featured on a Channel 4 documentary about brewing the perfect pint of beer (4th November). The actor Neil Morrissey and his friend Richard Fox came to the village to test their new brew, Morrissey Fox Blonde Ale beer, and the television cameras came with them to film proceedings. Richard Howell, the head brewer, showed the lads how to brew beer properly and put the village well and truly on the map. Well done Cropton Brewery! NOT ABOUT HEROES
On Thursday 6th November the Claptrap Theatre staged the play 'Not About Heroes' at the village hall. This intimate two-hander charted the friendship of two soldier-poets, Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon, who are caught in the horror of the first world war. Domonic Goodwin played Sassoon and Emanuel Brierley played Owen. Both were brilliant and captured the intensity of their relationship superbly.
PAUL WHEATER
On Friday 24th October Paul Wheater, the Country & Western singer from Whitby, gave a concert in the village hall. Paul sounds uncannily like Jim Reeves and he entertained the audience with many of Jims songs. Coupled with some amusing anecdotes of his time in the music industry it proved a very enjoyable night.
HARVEST FESTIVAL SEASON
The village harvest festival season got underway with the chapel service on Friday 3rd October. The service was led by Mrs.Ros.Dyson from Scarborough. She was accompanied by her friend Mark and he sang a couple of excellent solos. After the service there was an auction of produce. Bill Hebron was in good form and the auction, together with collection, raised £232 for chapel funds. It was a great team effort by all the chapel helpers. Many thanks to everyone for their contributions.
On Sunday 5th October the chapel continued their harvest celebrations with a morning service led by Les Carter. The church had an evening service, followed by a lovely harvest supper in the village hall. The supper was well supported and the food served was excellent. Thank you to all involved.
HERITAGE GROUP
Barry Harrison provided an interesting illustrated talk about the vernacular buildings in the locality. The topic proved to be very interesting and the meeting was well attended. Tea & biscuits were served during a lively discussion.
A GATHERING OF CLASSIC CARS & MOTORCYCLES
On Sunday 31st August the village welcomed the Teesside Yesteryear Motor Club for a village picnic. A number of vintage classic cars and motorcycles were on show in the village hall field. The weather was very kind and it was a great occasion. There were ample homemade refreshments available in the village hall, together with displays by the Heritage goup, walking sticks, spinning wheels, tombola and some bric-a-brac stalls. Entertainment was provided by the Stape Original Brass Band from 1.30pm onwards. A total of £518 was raised for village hall funds. Many thanks to everyone involved. It is good news that the motor club will return next year for another rally. Rally photos
VILLAGE HALL ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
There was a good turn out for the village hall anniversary celebration on Saturday 2nd August. Good use was made of the village marquee at the back of the village hall, where a lovely supper was served. Dancing followed the supper and that was provided by the Night Owl disco.
W.I. CHAMPIONS OF RYEDALE
Well done to the W.I. Ladies on capturing two trophies at the local Ryedale Show. The theme for one of the cups was 'My Fair Lady'. More details and photo of the 2008 W.I. Ladies.
MYSTERY
Can anyone help Barbara Aconley to sort out a mystery? A photo in the village hall has everyone stumped. It is of a celebration and no one seems to know whose it is. Can you help? The photo is here.
CHURCH GARDEN FETE
What a glorious summer's day for the church summer garden fete on Saturday 26th July! The sun shone and Stape Original Band were in full flow. Everyone enjoyed the weather and the cream teas served in the village hall. Just perfect! A total of £951 was raised for church funds. Thank you to all helpers, contributors and attendees. There are a few photos of the summer fete here
CHARITY TRACTOR RUN
The Ryedale Vintage Tractor Club met at Sandy Hutchinson's Hen Flatts Farm for a Charity Tractor Run. Around 50 tractors came through the village at 10.30am and there was a good crowd to see them. The tractors drove around a number of local villages and collected money for the benefit of the local Marie Curie charity. Check out the CHARITY TRACTOR RUN page for some photos.
PHOTOS 'OLD & NEW'
The Heritage Group presented some recently acquired photos in the village hall on Wednesday 18th June. An interesting slide show was given by Sue Coombes and Yvonne Pethullis. Lots of the photos showed how the village has changed over the past few years and many photos rekindled the memories of the older generation in the audience. Many thanks to the new photo contributors including Stan Peirson, Lynda Dring and George Hope. There were some fascinating new photos on show.
After the slide show a presentation was made to Mr. and Mrs. Varty by the Heritage Group Chairman, Philip Coombes. This was in gratitude for the excellent contribution they have given to the Heritage Group.
CHAPEL ANNIVERSARY
The chapel continued their anniversary celebrations with a service on Sunday 1st June at 10.30am. Mrs.Thelma Hobday took the service that celebrated 156 years of worship at the chapel. The service concluded with a presentation to Mrs. Dorothy Allanson in recognition of 33 years served as Treasurer.
YORK GOSPEL CHOIR
The annual chapel anniversary was held on Friday 30th May at 7.15pm. The York Gospel Choir came to entertain the full congregation. The choir were excellent and their talents were enjoyed by those present. Many of the choir members made a long journey to be at the chapel and that was appreciated. As always, the supper following the service was excellent. Many thanks to all the people involved with the anniversary.
CHURCH STALL
The Church Stall on Monday 26th May raised a total of £173 for church funds. Thanks to all the suppliers and buyers of the produce.
BRAZIL NIGHT
The Women's Institute arranged a Brazilian Evening for friends, in and around, the village on Wednesday 16th May in the village hall. A meal, with a Brazilian Flavour, was enjoyed by all. That was followed by a slideshow and talk by Gerald Pearce about his trip to Brazil. This was a very pleasant evening and many thanks to the Cropton W.I. for all their efforts.
SPRING FAIR
The Methodist Chapel held their annual 'Spring Fair' in the village hall on Saturday 3rd May. The weather was favourable and hall was packed with people, all enjoying cream teas and the various stalls. The event raised a total of £527.04 for chapel funds. Many thanks to everyone that contributed to a very successful day.
ANDREW NIX CONCERT
Andrew made a welcome return to Cropton and duly entertained the crowd with a wide selection of music. He is certainly a very talented guy and mixes his varied music with a good repartee with the audience. His new 'webcam' showed his talents to the full with a screen presentation of his keyboard playing skills on the wall at the back of the village hall. He has also invested in a new Roland Atelier AT80 SL Organ and he is well able to get the most out of it. Well done Andrew on another great show.
MAZAIKA CONCERT
It is fantastic to watch talented people play musical instruments and Mazaika were very accomplished musicians. This Violin and Accordion duo treated the audience to a real mix of music from around the world. Igor Outkine sang in numerous languages but his native Russian was very effective in portraying the passion of the Gypsey songs. Sarah Harrison on the Violin was outstanding. Well done to Mazaika for an enjoyable concert on Sunday 20th April 2008.
NEIL MORRISEY
Well known actor, Neil Morrisey (Men Behaving Badly), has been spotted at the New Inn recently. Apparently he is launching his own brew at a Microbrewery in Leeds. To learn the ropes of running a Microbrewery he has been having a look at the operations of the Cropton Brewery.
YORKSHIRE WARRIOR
The latest brew from the Cropton Brewery is the "Yorkshire Warrior". It is due to be launched on St.George's Day (23rd April 2008). The brewery are keen to help the Yorkshire Regiment Servicemen and they are donating at least 50p from every bottle or pint sold to the regiment benevolent fund. The launch of this brew will involve a day of activities and a pub tour in the area. There will also be entertainment by a local band, the Dangleberrys.
SCHOOL PHOTO
The CROPTON SCHOOL PHOTO from around 1955 was featured in the Gazette & Herald on the 16th April 2008.
GOLDEN WEDDING
Congratulations to Jean & Dick Feaster on their Golden Wedding Anniversary. The happy day was the 5th April 2008. A photo of their wedding day can be found on the Cropton Folk page. CROPTON FOLK
THE CROPTON MONTAGE
The Cropton Montage has finally been completed by local artist Richard Peacock. It has been framed and displayed in the village hall. It shows local sights and a few Cropton folk. You can take a look at the Montage and a couple of digital versions on the MONTAGE PAGE.