The local history society of Purley on Thames
The Project Purley Christmas Party will be held on Friday 16th December at 7:30 pm in the Barn.
There will be a hot supper and a Christmas Quiz. A professional caterer will supply a choice of three different main courses – two curries and one non-curry, and you can pre-order your preference. There will be a small charge to cover the cost of the catering. Before, during and after the food there will be a table quiz, which this year will have a distinctive Purley theme.
Pre-booking is required.
Rain or Shine will be back in in the Barn in Purley on Friday 2nd December!
Sherlock Holmes and the Music Hall Mystery
When Sherlock Holmes and his trusty assistant Doctor Watson are asked for help by a music hall performer in distress, the pair spring into action to foil a deeply dastardly plot of national importance that rocks London to the core!
Following on from their previous Sherlock Holmes mysteries – The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Case of Jekyll and Hyde, Rain or Shine Theatre invites you to enjoy an evening of adventure, mishaps, tomfoolery, and lashings of comedy!
Tickets are £12 adult and £8 child (under 15), available from David Downs at a Project Purley meeting or 0118 942 4167, or from the Rain or Shine website or from their box office ticket line on 03306 600541 (card payments).
Rain or Shine Theatre returns to the Barn for a performance of The Recruiting Officer on Saturday 16th July 7:30 pm.
Tickets from David Downs or online from Rain or Shine.
Friday 3rd June 10am – 12 noon
AFTERNOON TEA AND FASHION SHOW
Delicate sandwiches and delicious cakes, amidst a parade of fashions from the seventy years of the Queen’s reign, courtesy of Project Purley – Purley on Thames’ local history society
3 – 5pm (doors open 2.30pm)
The Barn, Goosecroft, off Beech Road, Purley, RG8 8BW (disabled access and toilets, Inductive Looped hearing system)
Tickets £12 (includes afternoon tea) from Marjorie on 0118 941 8856
Pre-booking required
An afternoon of delicious nibbles, relaxing conversation and laughter, and glamourous and distinctive fashion. The Queen’s reign has seen an enormous array of fashion trends from the nipped-in waists of the early 50s, through the mini-skirts of the 60s, and flares and shoulder pads of the 70s and 80s. We celebrate them all and their designers and enjoy a nostalgic look back at the changing trends. Early booking recommended as there is limited seating.
Thursday 2nd June 10am – 5pm
Friday 3rd June 10am to 12 noon
PURLEY DURING THE QUEEN’S REIGN EXHIBITION
An exhibition showing how Purley on Thames and the life of its inhabitants has changed during the last seventy years, organised by Project Purley and supported by individuals and organisations including Purley on Thames Women’s Institute, Purley Sustainability Group, Home Farm, Purley on Thames Cricket Club and Purley Horticultural Society.
The Barn, Goosecroft, off Beech Road, Purley, RG8 8BW (disabled access and toilets)
Special parking arrangements in place off Goosecroft Lane on the Thursday
Free
No booking required – just turn up
Step back in time to 1952 and discover the changes that Purley and its inhabitants, young and old, have undergone since then – in words, images and objects.
See how changes in technology, transport and inventions have shaped the lives of the community and how the large scale sale of land has changed the shape of the village. Discover the changes to our farms, the church, schools, shops, businesses and social and sporting organisations. Find out how the environment has changed over the last seventy years and how life within both home and garden has altered substantially.
Refreshments are available all day Thursday – so when you’ve spent some time in the exhibition – why not relax afterwards with a cup of tea and slice of cake or a cream tea.
The Rain or Shine performance has been postponed from December to February, due to continuing restrictions in numbers in the Barn.
25th February 2022: Around the World in 80 Days
There will be two performances: a matinee at 14:30 and an evening performance at 19:00.
Tickets are available direct from the Rain or Shine website, or their box office line 0330 660 0541.
It’s 1872
The Nightingale has struck again! The famous art thief has stolen three paintings from museums around London and is now attempting to flee the country for the safety of foreign soil.
At the same time, Phileas Fogg and his new valet Passepartout are attempting to go Around the World in 80 Days in order to win a bet of £20,000.
But is that just a cover story to hide the dastardly escape of The Nightingale? That’s what Scotland Yard’s finest detective, Chief Inspector Fix, believes and he will stop at nothing to capture our heroes.
Join Rain or Shine Theatre Company for a knock-about adventure full of mishaps, tomfoolery, British stiff upper lip, curious camels and lashings of comedy!
Suitable for audiences from age 6 to 106
Rain or Shine Theatre Company restarted performances for Summer 2021 with ‘She Stoops to Conquer’ on 23rd July 2021.
This was the first big event in the Barn, but with the audience limited to 50, and the bar service table only. It took some organising!
A few images from the event:
The performance was as good as always.
But setup was a bit of a headache!
On Friday December 18th at 7.30pm we are delighted to invite you to a Murder Mystery Play which will take place on Zoom. This replaces the previously announced quiz, which will now be rescheduled for next year.
In a special performance, just for Project Purley’s members, Shinfield Players will perform “Family Fortunes”. Guests are welcome if they will be on the same computer device.
The evening will last for approximately an hour and a half and will include a short break. Obviously there will be a murder and after the crime has been discovered and you have had a chance to ponder the clues, everyone will have the opportunity to direct a question to the cast and to then, finally, to guess the name of the murderer. I am sure there will be an opportunity for an informal natter before and afterwards.
Shinfield Players are kindly giving their services for free and instead, we will be making a donation from funds, via them, of £100 to Blood Bikes, Shinfield Players’ chosen charity of the year. Blood Bikes are a volunteer-run charity who support the NHS by getting blood to the place where it is needed. They have been going for over 50 years and the money I believe will go to the local Berkshire group. Since Covid-19 reared its head, blood bikes have been in more demand than ever, but at the same time overnight their traditional fundraising avenues all but dried up – so they are a very worthy cause.
Please do come along with a festive drink and nibbles, if you would like to.
The winter production of the Rain or Shine Theatre Company will be held at the Barn on Friday 29th November, 7:30 pm
Tickets from David Downs or online from Rain or Shine direct.
Wine, soft drinks and mince pies will be available to purchase at the bar before the performance and at the interval.