The Mill at Bromham reawakens

After months of quiet, the Mill at Bromham started buzzing again over the August bank holiday weekend. With a complete makeover, the onsite café has re-launched as The Mill Coffee Shop offering barista coffee, light snacks and free WIFI. A full breakfast and lunch menu is coming soon.

Local patron Gemma Wasling said: “It’s such an amazing transformation and a great selection of food. We will definitely be regular customers!” 

Plans are a foot to reinvigorate the entire site as a leisure and cultural destination for all to enjoy. Bromham Mill Trust Chairman Jim Francis commented: “Along with the coffee shop and Artists Network gallery which visitors can enjoy today, we’re working to attract further vendors to the site and to enhance and expand the Mill’s amenities and attractions.”

The Mill Coffee Shop and Artists Network gallery are currently open 9:30-16:00 Saturdays and 9:30-15:00 Sundays. Weekday openings will follow later this year. 

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Novel characters spotted in Felmersham

Visitors to Felmersham may have seen some interesting characters lurking around throughout August when the village was overtaken by weird and wonderful scarecrows. The annual Felmersham and Radwell Scarecrow Festival was a great success with this year’s theme of Children’s Story Books proving a popular choice.

The Sun in Felmersham hosted the judging on Sunday 5 September when Revd Paolo De Leo from St Mary's and barman, Tom Southam, had the tricky task of picking their favourites. Little Red Riding Hood scooped the top prize winning a £50 voucher for Mercedes Gray-Radburn to spend at The Wine Cellar in Felmersham. Second prize of Sunday lunch at The Sun went to the Yasseen family for their Peter Rabbit scarecrow with Donna Hulatt’s Spiderman coming third and earning a box of donuts from Minkiemoo Bakery in Radwell. A special prize, of a Hamper donated by St Mary’s Church in Felmersham, for the most comical entry was awarded to Sophie Wells for her mischievous Burglar Bill making his escape with a bag of swag.

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Find the golden pumpkin!

Secret Pumpkin,a new five-acre Pick Your Own patch, has opened at Andersons Farm and Nursery in Moggerhanger. With 20,000 pumpkins growing onsite, including 25 varieties of pumpkin and 10 varieties of squash, you can grab a wheelbarrow and head out into the field to find your own perfect pumpkin.

Tickets include free parking, children’s activities - pumpkin carving, mini tractors, space hoppers and straw fun - plus plenty of unique photo backdrops. Refreshments and toilets are also available on site. And there’s more fun to be had with a Golden Secret Pumpkin hidden daily. Find it to win a prize! www.secretpumpkin.farm

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Archaeological finds unearth Bedford Borough history

An excavation on the edge of Biddenham uncovered a middle-to-late Iron Age settlement including enclosures (possibly to keep their animals), a round house, a well, and storage and cooking pits, as well as several Anglo-Saxon buildings. A large ‘hengiform’ monument potentially dating back to the Neolithic or Bronze Age (4000–700 BC) was also uncovered, highlighting the complex history of Bedford Borough.

Further excavations at a housing development on the land south of Wootton revealed a late Iron Age settlement and a cremation cemetery. Of the graves excavated, 15contained near-complete urns and 13 contained additional vessels. The findings provide a valuable local example of burial practices in Bedford Borough at the time of the Roman Conquest of Britain.

To access the Historic Environment Record and to search a list of summary records, visit

www.bedford.gov.uk

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Happy anniversary Odell WI!

Odell Women’s Institute celebrated its 75thAnniversary with a tea party on a sunny summer afternoon in August.

Tables were set out on the Village Hall terrace and decorated with flower arrangements, white tablecloths and napkins with rings displaying the WI logo and bunting adorned the area.

Members past and present were invited along with new ladies to the village. Rachel Halton(President) cut the celebration cake after which everybody enjoyed a celebratory glass of prosecco. 

Do you have some village news to share?

Email jacqui@bedslifemagazine.co.uk

Copy deadline for the November issue is 12 October

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