The Merry Harriers, Hambledon’s 16^th Century village pub, reopened just over a month ago as lock-down restrictions eased. This involved a great deal of hard work and planning to ensure it could keep locals, visiting guests and staff safe. In this week’s Reflection, general manager Jake Andreou looks back on how things have gone.

One month on from re- opening, and I thought it might be time to write a little reflection on how the pub has handled the changing circumstances post-lock-down.

Our customers will have noticed the many differences in how we serve at the Harriers, but the changes go far deeper than what you see.

The most notable thing for me is how much our busy hours have changed. It used to be a certain bet that Sunday would be the busiest day of the week, but now it is almost impossible to predict just how busy we’ll be on a day-to-day basis.

For example, some Tuesdays have been busier than a peak summertime Sunday would have been last year! As a result, it is difficult to manage the rota to ensure we have enough staff on duty from our small (but dedicated) team.

I would like to say “thank you” to everyone who has visited us in the last month for how understanding you have been with my staff. It really does make a difference and it keeps their heads held high on otherwise challenging shifts.

It has also been great to see how many of you have come down and supported us in an ever-changing world. When I arrived last autumn, I seldom saw the front ‘beach’ as busy as it is now, with tables full of people laughing and enjoying each other’s company…at a safe distance of course.

In terms of an advert for the business I’m proud to be running, I could not ask for more.

We are very fortunate to have the outdoor space and seating that we do, and I’m hopeful that the weather remains favourable for as much of summer as possible!

How things will change when winter arrives – bringing colder and wetter weather – will be next in a long line of challenges since the Covid pandemic arrived. But that is something we must plan for when the time draws nearer. At the moment I have enough to concern me, trying to keep enough barrels of Shere Drop in our cellar and bottles of rose wine in our fridges!

For me, lock-down was difficult at times with only the ever-patient Nick Ash, the sous chef, to keep me company for long stretches.  Together with Jake the dog, of course.

So, I just wanted to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all of you who have checked in on me and the pub, not just as customers but as friends, and I look forward to seeing you in the days and weeks to come.

The benefits of cycling have been highlighted during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the Government urging more people to use bikes to replace car, bus and train journeys. There are health and environmental advantages as well.

But for some in our village, getting together for a enjoyable evening ride is a long-established practice. This week’s Sunday Reflection is provided by George and Caroline Pitt, of the Hambledon Peddlers.

Our twenty eighth season started on 16 April 2020, just as Lockdown was being tightened. As pubs were closed three couples brought their own refreshment in saddle bags and we enjoyed a circular ride past the station, Coombe Lane, to Chiddingfold and the shut Crown and up Vann Lane .

We enjoyed seeing the Snakeshead fritillaries outside Vann and went on to see lambs and yellow primroses along the edges of Upper Vann Lane where we rested on the side of the lane with the evening sun shining from the west.

After a glass or two and plenty of chat there was a choice of return route. The more intrepid braved steep Upper Vann Lane and across the bridleway to Hambledon Church and back down to Hambledon Village Hall. The less athletic descended Upper Vann Lane gladly and cycled back to the Cricket Green and the Village Hall.

With Lockdown tightening further, no more group evenings were held until July 23′^d when three of us cycled to Chiddingfold and finding the Crown closed we had a drink in the back garden of The Swan.

In the three months from mid April to mid July in order to keep active Caroline and I went out on our own on a number of Thursday evenings and used previous Hambledon Pedller routes to enjoy the marvellous spring weather. These included Godalming, Hurtmore and Eashing, Hambledon Common and Witley, and Dunsfold and Chiddingfold. Bluebells were enjoyed at Winkworth Arboretum and in Hambledon Hurst, and wild garlic on bridleways to Dunsfold and Mill Lane, Chiddlingfold.

On most of these rides we asked friends near to the route if we could see them outside on a socially distanced basis for a drink.

We are hoping that we can renew Peddler rides and keep riding out on Thursday evenings over the summer. We meet at the Village Hall at 6pm. Do come and join us and give us a try.

Any questions please call us on 01428 682940. Or you may want to be included on the HP group email at [email protected]

For those who haven’t yet visited Hambledon’s online Art Fair, or who want to return to make a last-minute purchase, you still have a few days left!

It closes this Friday, July 31st at 10pm.

We would like to thank everyone who has visited the site, John C for putting the website together but mainly, of course, the wonderful artists who have made the fair such a success with their beautiful work. We are so lucky to have such a wealth of talent in our local area.

To visit the fair, please go to www.hambledonartfair.co.uk

Small businesses operating out of Hambledon’s former coal yard have grouped together to showcase what they have to offer on a new website which also promotes wider village attractions.

Under the banner of Coal Yard Creatives, the website was set up by Ian and Alpa Cox, after relocating their micro gin distillery to one of the new units.

Currently the yard hosts a range of small enterprises including tile maker, a joinery, party shop, bespoke bakery, catering service, florist and upholsterer, and a martial arts studio, with potentially more to come.

The Shop operating hours are about to become a bit simpler.

From Monday 20 July the Shop will be open 08:30 to 14:00 7 days a week, deli service will be available 08:30-13:30.

The Post Office will continue to be open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 09:30 to 12:30.

Deliveries will be now be available Monday through Friday with orders placed by 10am delivered the same day. We love having your business and we encourage you to place orders – don’t think you’re creating unwanted work for us!

These changes provide a bit more consistency and also should allow us to create a safer environment in the shop which allows us to get additional volunteers and professional staff back working in the shop. 

In August the Shop will be participating in the Government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme. Under this scheme we will offer a 50% discount, up to a maximum of £10 per person, to all customers who eat and/or drink at our picnic tables throughout August on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. And that’s why we have bunting….

Contrary to popular rumour, the bunting has not been put up to celebrate a birthday this Thursday, it’s really there to allow us to clearly explain to customers how to eat on our premises, given that in August we do not plan to have seating in the shop or on the terrace. Anyone ordering food or drink for consumption on the shop benches inside the bunting will qualify for the Eat Out to Help Out discount.

At the outset of lock-down, many village organisations were required to close. Others, and especially the community-run village shop and post office, had to find a new and safe way of working in order to provide customers, many of them elderly, at risk and self-isolating, with vital deliveries. One consequence of this was “The Paper Girls”. In this week’s Sunday Reflection, Jo Kirkland, one of that cheerful team, looks back over an eventful time.

On an early lock-down day back in March a text went out to our COVID-19 village group asking for volunteers to deliver the newspapers a couple of times a week. Four of us responded: Alpa, Portia, Lena and I. From that moment on we became “The Paper Girls”, a soon-to-be hit “girl” band with Jon Petersen as our hard-talking, star-making manager, delivering papers until fame beckoned!

It seemed like a way to do our bit for the village and a bit of fun, to have some banter in the group, and get out and about. Little did I know that it would come to define my week; to remind me what day it was as they all began to merge into one; to give me a chance to chat with at least four other people and also the households on my paper round; to track my progress on my bike up the hills of Hambledon and to feel I had a purpose other than home schooling and watching Netflix. 

I already knew Lena and Jon but I had never met Portia or Alpa. In our treasured chats (some a bit longer than others – sorry if your paper was late some days!) while we waited for our papers, we discussed kids, families, nutrition, injuries, death, business, politics, hangovers, emotions. Jon fixed our bikes, we occasionally practised yoga, we found common ground and we made friends.

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Since the introduction of restrictive measures to combat the Coronavirus pandemic, Hambledon website has invited village organisations to reflect on life under extraordinary circumstances. This week we hear from Camilla Edmiston on behalf of the Book Club.

There is something truly magical about losing yourself in a really good book. Never more so than in the current strange times in which we find ourselves.

As part of the Merry Book Club I have loved the opportunity to sometimes be challenged to read different things – books I would never have chosen but have then really enjoyed. Or sometimes not.

However, it is still a revelation and creates interesting conversations when we meet and discuss who likes what and why.

The Village Hall Committee are very pleased to welcome you to our second professional art fair. Please click on the link www.hambledonartfair.co.uk to view a wide variety of beautiful artwork by our local artists. You will have the opportunity to purchase work directly from the artists.

We hope you enjoy the fair and we look forward to welcoming you back to the village hall as soon as we are able.

Progress sometimes seems slow, but progress is being made. From Saturday 4th July customers can consume food and drink at the shop’s picnic tables.

The tables have been given some tender loving care and placed suitably distanced from each other on as level ground as can be found. Tim Coleman did a fine job of manicuring the grass. Thanks to all who helped with the tables today, we all agreed it is a lovely spot to sit, next to the pond, looking out on the Cricket Green, some in the sun, some in the shade, we’ve probably all taken it for granted in the past.

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From the morning of Saturday, July 4th, the Village Hall Committee invites you to log on to our second Hambledon Art Fair at www.hambledonartfair.co.uk 

You will be able view a wide variety of fine work from local, professional artists and have the   opportunity to buy work directly from the artists.

Lock-down restrictions across the UK will be further relaxed this Saturday, July 4^th, allowing for the reopening of pubs and restaurants as long as safety measures are in place and enforced.

In Hambledon, The Merry Harriers will reopen at midday, just over 100 days since it was required to close.

Behind the scenes, general manager Jake Andreou has been working hard to ensure the pub can comply with detailed government guidelines to protect staff, locals and staying guests from the risk of contracting the Covid-19 virus.

A member of staff will meet and greet customers arriving at the main entrance. The new measures will be explained, any questions answered, and a contact taken for individuals or for one member if in a small group. Drinks can be ordered at the bar, which has a Perspex screen installed, and will be delivered to you at a table. Payment will be by card.

A one-way system will be in place and customers will enter and leave by different doors. Tables and benches – inside and in the garden areas – have been situated to ensure correct social distancing can be maintained. A marquee has been erected on the boules court and this may also have a bar for outside drinkers.

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Hambledon FC have launched a Crowfunding site to help us make some upgrades to the Badger Park pitch. With the added incentive that Sport England will donate £1,500 to the cause if we hit our target.

More details are on our site below. Any donation however small would be greatly appreciated. 

http://Hambledon Crowdfunding Site  

Thank you for your support.

Come On You Dons