Page 952 - Reading Mercury

absence through illness. A talk on sponge making and fillings, given by Mrs.
Rampton, was much enjoyed.

EMBANKMENT FIRES
Four times on Thursday, Wokingham firemen were called out to deal with
embankment fires. Twice the blazes were at Winnersh Halt railway station, once at
the embankment at Finchampstead Road, Wokingham, and a fourth at Skew Bridge,
Wokingham.

MOTHERS’ UNION GARDEN PARTY
The annual All Saints’ Mothers’ Union garden party—organised by Mrs. F.A. Steer,
wife of the rector—was held on Thursday afternoon in the grounds of The Rectory,
Rectory Road, Wokingham. Present during the afternoon was the Mayor, Dr. P.P.
Pigott.

BECHES MANOR HOTEL IS DESTROYED BY FIRE
The Beches Manor Hotel, Wokingham, was destroyed by fire on Wednesday night.
The building was empty and scheduled for preservation because of historical and
architectural interest.

Fri 14th July
POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE AT GLEBELANDS
Celebrities from all branches of the film industry converged on Glebelands, the
Cinematograph Trade Benevolent Fund’s home in Wokingham on Saturday for the
opening of the C.M. Woolf Memorial Cottages. To match the celebrities the garden
party had been arranged on a grand scale. A red-coated, white-gloved master of
ceremonies announced the president of the fund, Sir Philip Water; the chairman, Mr.
Ralph Bromhead, and the manager of the Glebelands Home, Mr. M.P. Thompson—
and their wives.
Teas were served at tables under gay umbrellas in the spreading cedar tree corner of
the vast sweep of lawn. Sideshows manned by the sports clubs of various film studios
were to be found on the south side of the lawn.
Underfloor heating
The three pairs of Memorial Cottages costing just under £20,000 were designed by
the fund’s honorary architect, Mr. Harry Weedon. Each cottage has two reception and
two bedrooms, parquet flooring, a modern bathroom and kitchen, and electrically
controlled underfloor heating.
Unveiling the memorial plaque outside the cottages, the Mayor of Wokingham, Dr.
Phyllys Pigott, what ideal homes they would make for the elderly residents of
Glebelands who wanted their own things about them and wished to retain their own
independence.
The fund’s chairman speaking about the late Mr. Woolf, who died in 1942, said
what a tower of strength he had been to the film industry.
Although the majority of the people present were, so to speak, the “back room boys”
of the film industry three who arrived accompanied and supported by publicity agents
were Carol Lesley, Yvonne Buckingham, and Norman Rossington.
Miss Lesley has just finished filming with singer Adam Faith in “What a Whopper”
Miss Buckingham has just finished two thriller films in Ireland—”Murder in Eden”
and “Question of Suspense”. Norman has just been filming “Go to Blazes” with Dave

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