HAMBLEDON ROCKED, IT ROLLED, IT REMEMBERED AND IT RESPECTED.

It all started on the Thursday before the Festival Weekend (June 19th, 20th and 21st) when Jane Woolley’s many village friends gathered to remember her contribution to our village by joining in her 90^th Birthday celebration on the Cricket Green.

It continued the following day with a large crowd gathered to hear two fine bands performing at Jazz on The Green, heralding the start of the Hambledon Festival.

On the Saturday Hambledon’s ever-popular traditional village fete took place, with a large variety of stands, stalls, displays and the dog show, always a star attraction for young and old.

In the evening the Ball in the marquee was a big success with every table taken by villagers, family and friends to eat, party, and enjoy dancing until midnight to live music, supplemented by a beer bar operated by the Merry Harriers. It rocked! (photo galleries)

Derek Miller’s many Hambledon friends will have been deeply saddened to hear that he died on May 24^th at the age of 91.

He and his wife Cynthia were both much loved and respected, not least for the immense contribution that they made to community life in our village.

His daughter Janet Smith is happy for our website to share details of his funeral, to which all who knew him are very welcome.

It will take place at St Peter’s Church, Hambledon, on Wednesday June 24^th. The service starts at 1.30pm followed by a burial in the churchyard at 2.30pm. Afterwards there will be refreshments at the Merry Harriers, an opportunity for his family and friends to chat and reflect on a long and active life.

With family, grandchildren and possibly even great grandchildren in attendance, and a large number of friends from Hambledon and beyond, car parking space will be at a premium. For those who can, it is worth considering arriving on foot and walking up Church Lane or the footpath through the kissing gate opposite the pub.

Derek and Cynthia moved south from their native Yorkshire in connection with his work and chose Hambledon as place to live in 1984, expecting to be a fairly temporary arrangement until his retirement. But they both grew to love our small, rural village and made it their home for the rest of their lives.

He said: “We never planned to stay here but it is such a lovely place with such lovely people that we never left”.

Derek became a Hambledon Parish Councillor and served for 16 years before stepping down in 2011. He was instrumental in putting together the council’s Parish Plan, a document that required widespread local consultation, and which set out achievable aims and ambitions of small councils. It remains a working document to this day, albeit in updated form.

For many years he edited the Hambledon Parish Magazine. He was a key member of the Hambledon Ramblers, and was in charge of arranging the longer walks. He was also a part of the small team that helped set up this Hambledon village website.

His wife Cynthia died in early 2022 at the age of 84 and was at the time the longest serving village community shop volunteer and a key member of the Wednesday Afternoon Group social gathering.

Both were active members of St Peter’s congregation and, for a long time, were regulars at the Merry Harriers with their close friends Ron and Ann Vickery, Ginge and Sue Blackman and Mic and Sylvia Coleman.

Derek and Cynthia met in their home city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, where both were working as school-leavers at the Royal Infirmary. They married after Derek’s two year’s of National Service in Japan and Singapore.

He will be greatly missed for his friendship, wise counsel and commitment to helping the village he and Cynthia settled in for a long and happy retirement.

Live music returns to Hambledon Cricket Green on the evening of Friday 19th June with an incredible double-bill line-up put together by musical maestro David Kirby. Mark your calendars, gather your friends, and secure your tickets for an evening of big band classics and high-energy jazz-funk.

The Line-Up

6:00pm – 7:30pm: Junction 4 Big Band (featuring vocalist Huw Lloyd)

Opening the evening is a powerful 17-piece ensemble of musicians from the Surrey, Hampshire, and Berkshire areas. They deliver a wide selection of big-band music, spanning from 1930s swing to modern chart hits—covering composers and artists from Glenn Miller and Count Basie to Nirvana, Pharrell Williams, and Steely Dan.

This year, they are joined by up-and-coming singer-songwriter and pianist Huw Lloyd. Originating from Wrexham, Huw has performed at many prestigious venues and describes his style as a blend of Frank Sinatra, Harry Connick Jr., and Jamie Cullum.

7:45pm – 9:30pm: Motet (featuring vocalist Debby Bracknell & percussionist Dave Lambert)

Closing the night is an 8-piece band known for original jazz-funk tunes combining rich horn arrangements with high-energy rhythms. Their intricate melodies and infectious grooves are rooted in funk, soul, and Latin traditions, featuring original tracks alongside creative, high-octane arrangements of iconic artists like Stevie Wonder, Yellowjackets, Steps Ahead, and Bob Berg.

For this performance, Motet’s core rhythm and horn sections are joined by two exceptional guests:

• Debby Bracknell: A leading jazz, soul, and session vocalist who has worked with Ariana Grande, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, and Shakatak.

• Dave Lambert: A premier percussionist whose career spans the jazz world to full orchestral ensembles.

Event Summary

• Event: Hambledon Jazz on the Green 2026

• Time: Friday 19th June – 6:00pm – 10:00pm

• Location: The Village Green

Tickets are selling now. Head over to our booking page to secure yours before they sell out!

https://ti.to/hambledon-festival/jazzonthegreen2026

Do you want to know what used to happen at sunrise on top of Hydon’s Ball, or why so many people used to gather for an uproarious event held in the field behind the Merry Harriers?

Do you want to know why Father Christmas arrived in Hambledon in an Austin Allegro?

Do you want to know how Hambledon, faced with the loss of so many things that enrich village life, fought back to become a place that is “fully alive” and acclaimed by judges in a national competition a “community that has almost done the impossible?”

If so, then please come along to the Hambledon Heritage Society AGM in the Village Hall this evening (Thursday March 19^th), starting at 7.30 with drinks and photo slide show followed by a presentation from Stewart Payne – “Hambledon – the Last 40 Years”. All welcome.

The Cricket Club AGM will be taking place on Tuesday 3rd March @ 8.00pm at the HCC Pavilion.

This is a great opportunity to have a say in how the club is run, so please come along if you can.

The Hambledon Village webteam wish all our villagers a Happy New Year and an enjoyable 2026.

We will continue to update residents and others with an interest in Hambledon throughout 2026, keeping everyone abreast of the many community events and activities, news of parish matters, and much else. If you have not already done so, please take a quick scroll around our website and look at the many features it has to offer.

The website belongs to the village, not to any one organisation, and anyone is free to post. If you need help, just message the webteam using the contact link in the top menu.

And to sign off for 2025, we finish with a lovely photograph courtesy of Alice Servaes, of a late December sunset over the Merry Harriers, taken from a high point on Feathercombe Farm. The village local will, no doubt, host many villagers tonight as we toast in 2026.

Please come along and celebrate a much-loved village tradition as we mark the 10th Hambledon Village Shop Christmas Eve Mulled Wine, Mince Pies & Sing-Along, with live music from our band and choir.

What’s happening

• Mulled wine from 11:15
• Christmas singing from 12:00

The Shop and Post Office will be open during normal hours.

To allow our staff and volunteers to join in the celebrations, the Deli will close at 11:00 and will be offering a limited festive menu, including:

• Mulled drinks
• French pastries
• Cakes
• Sausage rolls
• Breakfast baps

A Heartfelt Thank You This event is also a celebration of the 100+ incredible staff members and volunteers who keep our shop thriving. We are always looking for new “Elves” to join our team—if you’d like to get involved, please come chat with us!

We look forward to welcoming you on Christmas Eve there is no charge, but donations are welcome to cover the cost of the event🎄

The first day of December is the official start of the Meteorological Winter. Even before then, there was a significant cold snap followed by heavy rain and winds. In Hambledon, as elsewhere, frosts, snow flurries and blustery winds have reminded us that we should be prepared for potential disruption.

Thank you to villager Antonia Pascoe, from Vann Lane, who provided the lovely photograph below taken recently, which illustrates so beautifully our ever-changing and unpredictable weather.

The Shop will be hosting its annual End of Summer BBQ on Saturday 30th August from 4:30pm to 7:00pm. 

Tickets are available online (click here) and at the shop: £13:50 for adults and £5 for under 16s.

The ticket price includes BBQ food (with vegan option), salads and an ice-cream plus live music. There will be licensed bars for you to purchase your favourite tipple and soft drinks.

Bring picnic tables and chairs or blankets (let’s hope we won’t need rain brollies)!

Please purchase your ticket by Thursday 21st AUGUST so we know how many we’re catering for.

On the same day The Village Show will be in full swing at The Village Hall. The Hall will be open for setting up exhibits from 9.30am to 11.30am. After judging the show will be open to the public at 2pm to 4.30pm, entry is free. Best in Show will be awarded at 4.00pm. A full list of available categories can be found on the show web site at: http://hambledonvillageshow.co.uk.

Alice Servaes, on behalf of Feathercombe Farm, has asked the village website team to post notice of impending works to install a new polo pony exercise track and arena, so that residents are aware of lorry movements during construction.

Planning permission has been granted after due consultation and it is expected that work will begin on the site, accessed off Feathercombe Lane, on or around April 14^th. The project is expected to take between six to eight weeks and all vehicles will arrive from the Milford direction and will not drive through the village.

Lorry traffic is expected to be at its greatest several weeks in to the construction, when drainage and surfacing work will be taking place. Alice said she plans to keep residents informed of progress using the village WhatsApp group.

The arena requires no new buildings, fencing or other visible construction and the landscape should appear unchanged once work is completed.

The Surrey Hills AONB and Surrey Wildlife Trust have been involved in discussions with Feathercombe Farm and Alice said: “We will be putting some more hedges in at some point as well as trees. We really want to try and encourage the birdlife and all wildlife as much as possible.”

Please the plan below.

As Hambledon heads into Spring, with daffodils, primroses and cowslips coming into bloom and bluebells soon to flower, it is timely to look to see what the season offers of interest to villagers.

First up, at the Village Hall on Thursday March 13^th, is the Hambledon Heritage Society’s annual presentation. This year it features a talk on the subject of Witley and Haslemere Artists, 1859-1914.

The speaker is Sarah Bain, honorary vice president of Haslemere Educational Museum who will focus on the lives of the many artists who came to live in the area and gained inspiration from its beautiful countryside, Hambledon’s included. Doors open at 7.30pm for refreshments followed at 8pm with the Society’s brief AGM formalities and then the presentation.