Do you recall the HP Herald crash of 1958?

On a quiet Saturday afternoon in August 1958 the Hambledon cricket team were assembled on the Green. Their play was interrupted by the noise of an aircraft very low overhead. Arthur Blackman looked up to see an airliner on fire with flames engulfing the starboard wing. The aircraft was only one minute away from disaster.

Seconds later a couple of residents of Hydestile saw the aircraft approaching, at 1000ft, heading West. Paul Vacher recalls it vividly and recounted how he saw the starboard engine fall off the wing and plummet towards the ground – estimating that it came down in the fields to the North West of Hydestile crossroads.

Handley Page Dart Herald prototype flying at 6000′ over the Surrey Weald alongside a HP Victor V-Bomber
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Hambledon Easter Events

Please take a look at the Easter page on godalmingminster.org for everything happening at St Peter’s Hambledon, and across Godalming Minster over Easter. As well as observing Easter with reverence, there’s several more inclusive and social ways for everyone to get involved.

Highlights at Hambledon include An Hour at the cross at from 12-1pm on Good Friday, before the trekkers arrive from Busbridge for tea and hot cross buns at the end of the Hot Cross Bun Adventure. If you want to join them, please meet at Godalming Minster Brighton Road at 2.30pm.

Messy Easter on Sat 30th is a real treat for younger ones. Meet at the Village Hall at 10am for a walk up to Hambledon Common where there’ll be games and an egg hunt on the sandpit.

Then come along to church at 10am on Easter Day to celebrate Jesus is Risen!

There’s no morning service on 7th April, but do please join us for the Spring Choral Evensong at 6pm (with thanks in advance to the very accomplished pop-up choir!).

The Hot Cross Bun Adventure – a 5km walk from Busbridge to Hambledon, or vice versa!
Messy Easter games on Hambledon Common

Multipliers at the ready – it’s Village Hall Quiz Time!

The Spring Quiz at the village hall is on Saturday, April 13th at 7pm for a 7.30pm start, hosted by our usual fantastic quizmaster, Bill Dann.

There will be a raffle with great prizes and a bar taking cash or card payments with a selection of wines, beers, soft drinks and snacks.

Tickets are £10 each available at the shop from Tuesday, March 19th. Teams of up to six people only, please.

New ‘What’s On’ Page For The Village Hall

We now have a ‘What’s On’ page on our village hall website pages where you can see all our events for the coming year.

It will be updated as events happen and you will be able to buy online tickets for events as they become available.

The page address is www.hambledonsurrey.co.uk/villagehall or search on the village website for the village hall pages.

Have a look now by clicking on the link below and see what we have in store for 2024!

Click here to go to our ‘What’s On’ page

Heritage Society Talk 2024

King George V Hospital and St. Thomas’ Hospital History

Here is a recording of the illustrated talk at this year’s Hambledon Heritage Society AGM.
It is 1 hour long and was presented to a packed village hall on the 14th March 2024. You will find more information about the hospitals and their history in the main menu under History/Hospital Histories.

Hour long presentation March 2024, Hambledon Village Hall

Rock Hill UPDATE – ROAD OPEN

An update to yesterday’s new item below…Hambledon Road reopened at around 4pm this afternoon (Thursday March 14th).

It had been closed for several days at Rock Hill. Thames Water work, which had been delayed, was completed today. The road closure signs have been removed and a member of the workforce told the parish council that no further work is required and the road will remain open.

  • Remember, if you are reading this on the day of this update being posted, it is the Hambledon Heritage Society annual meeting at the village hall tonight, 7.30 for 8pm start, and all are welcome to hear an illustrated talk given by parish resident Paul Osborne on the fascinating history of the King George V and St Thomas’s Hospitals at Hydestile.

((Original news item) Hambledon Road remains closed at Rock Hill between the Merry Harriers and Church Lane, despite a Thames Water information board stating it would reopen today (Wednesday March 13th).

The road is impassable to vehicles, with a trench across part of the road and a parked digger. No workers were on site for a second day and no activity taking place. Pedestrians and cyclists can get through.

The pub and the nursery school can be accessed, but only from the Godalming/Hydestile direction.

The Parish Council is attempting to get an explanation from Thames Water for the delay and confirmation of when the road will reopen.

The photo below was taken at 3.30pm this afternoon, showing the closure but no Thames Water staff on site.