Author: Stephen

Pembrokeshire, Rock and Roll and a Banquet

An Initiative Supported by The London Pembrokeshire Society

The St. David’s Rock School is an initiative led by local musician, Ross Gurney, which provides opportunities for children between the ages of 11 and 16  to play rock music with other youngsters whilst being mentored by experienced musicians. 

The latest session was held on April 2nd and 3rd and attracted 30 children of varying abilities.  Their parents and friends were treated to a concert featuring three bands, a duo and a drum soloist performing music they had learned and practiced together. 

The children cannot be praised enough for their incredible energy and enthusiasm and their willingness to engage and work together, all the (15) volunteers were blown away by it and all felt privileged to have been involved. 

Thanks to the Hideaway Trio, Ysgol Penrhyn Dewi and the head, Rachael Thomas, for making the school available to us, local publican Oli Blakiston who provided lunch on both days, The St David’s Penknife Club who sponsored our T shirts, Pembrokeshire Music Service for their support and the London Pembrokeshire Society, whose generous donation allowed us to buy a guitar and amplifier (one of three) which have now been loaned to a child so they can practice and develop.  Diolch Yn Fawr to all.

The London Pembrokeshire Society’s 124th annual banquet

The London Pembrokeshire society held their 124th annual banquet in Mark Masons’ Hall , 86 St. James Street on 5th April 2024.

The banquet comprised asparagus, pea and mint tart, roasted lamb and a pear and rhubarb crumble. Our guest of honour, Liza Lort Phillips, was introduced by Michael Pugh (one of our members). Liza is a descendent of Admiral John Lort Stokes, who accompanied Charles Darwin on his voyage on the Beagle.

Liza spoke of her early days on a Pembrokeshire farm, and of her subsequent journey through China, Africa and Latin America initially studying language, then moving on to working with international companies and charities on sustainable supply chains.

She has returned to Pembrokeshire, where she is now based, continuing her work with an organisation called Cymbrogi. Liza was thanked for her talk by our new president David J Morgan Esq.

Society donates to Pembrokeshire charities

The London Pembrokeshire Society made donations to three charities this year:

One of the charities is the Sea Life Centre (Ocean Lab) in Goodwick, Fishguard. We had a most interesting visit to the Sea Life Centre in 2016 when we visited Fishguard and decided to support their good work. Pictured is committee member Jenny Thomas presenting a cheque to the sea life centre.

Visit to National Heritage Centre, Pembroke Dock

Twenty members of the London Pembrokeshire Society visited the National Heritage Centre at Pembroke Dock today.

We heard a fascinating talk by Derek, one of the volunteers at the centre, about some of the history of the area, in particular the fire of August 1940 when an oil storage tank was hit by a German bomb, causing a fire that raged for 20 days; the longest burning fire in British History.  Over 500 firemen from fire brigades as far afield as Birmingham fought the fire to prevent it spreading.

The centre has a wealth of information about the area, with a focus on the Sunderland seaplanes that were stationed at Pembroke Dock during the second world war, one of which (T9044) lies at the bottom of the harbour.  The Pembroke Dock Sunderland Trust is in the process of raising money to raise the aircraft and some parts have been recovered and restored, including one of the engines which is on display at the Heritage Centre.

There are also lots of fascinating artefacts from the period, with uniforms of servicemen and women, each with a personalised background story.

Did you know… The lifesized Millenium Falcon (from a slightly different era) was built in Pembroke Dock for the filming of Star Wars?

We can highly recommend a visit – a fascinating slice of history, served up with a mean Latte from the coffee shop.

http://www.sunderlandtrust.com/

Lobster feast at Cafe Mor!

We’re in Pembrokeshire this weekend and some of us visited the CAFE MOR in Freshwater West where we had Lobster Rolls which were deservedly awarded ‘best street food of the year’ in 2014.   The rolls were out of this world and we sat on the dunes overlooking a beautiful sunny bay.

This is the life!

Cafe Mor is a mobile catering unit and we’re delighted to see that it is eco-friendly, using solar panels to power the cooking.