This entry is a work in progress as there are many more photographs to be added and personnel identified: Picnicing at the Sailor's Stone, 1957 Gathering at the Village Hall, probably early 80s From the Parish Magazine, April1981 Tom Ranson, standing Trip to The Oaks for the Over 60s: Betty Weeden; Maggie Cooper; Nora Gale

Work in Progress: see separate entry for Smallbrook Farm . SMALLBROOK FARM Smallbrook Farm, North side, October 1996 SMALLBROOK COTTAGE Lynne, Adrian. and Sebastian Stewart lived here in 1996 Other owners include: Daw LITTLE SHAVINGS Little Shavings. Surnames of previous owners include: Hughes; Moore; Thomas Little Shavings, October 1996 SMALLBROOK BARN AND STUDIO HAYBARN Haybarn, North side Haybarn Garden Shelter Other owners include: Blixen-Finnicke

Three village calendars were produced in 2010, 2011 and 2012 and were sponsored by The Guildford Flames and The Three Horseshoes. Then there was a hiatus until 2023 when they were produced by the village hall committee and sponsored by Mathwall, The Three Horseshoes and Butterflies Nursery School. Photographs for 2010, 2001 and 2012 were contributed by: David Beechey, David Brickwood, Pat Clake, Bryony Chapman, Sarah Dashwood, Sean Edwards, Liz Ethrington, Nadine Froggatt, Alastair Graham Stewart, Jerry Horwood, Peter Hunter, Simon Hall, David Johnston, Arthur Lindley, Nicky Perkins, Sally Scheffers, Georgina Skinner, Lynn Skinner, Philip Traill and Tim Walsh. Photographs for 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026 were contributed by: Clea Beechey, Lucy Brooks, Oakley Brooks, Anthea Croft, Manda Dinsmore, Gillian Duke, Sean Edwards, Cameron Ferris, Valérie Ferris, Amanda Flint, James Giles, Doug Gordon, Jenny Gordon, Amanda Hall, Carrie Hesmondhalgh Jerry Horwood, Andrii Kaplanovskyi, Caroline Mardon, Chris McClements, Neil McIntyre, Sarah O’Brien,  Josh Owen, Rich Owen, Michelle Presley, Miriam Sharland, Richard Symonds, Tamsin Taylor Mathews, Tim Wakeley, Stephen Walsh.

Upper Highfield Farm is a timber-framed, smoke-bay house that dates from the second half of the 16th century. Grade II listed building (9 March 1960) The entry below was published by SurreyLive under the heading "Secrets of a farmhouse at Thursley: https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/secrets-farmhouse-thursley-4845854 UPPER  Highfield Farm in Thursley has a fascinating history. The farmhouse was, at one time, owned by a school. In 1913 a folk song collector visited one of its tenants and noted down three traditional songs. House detective Philip Gorton has been researching its history for the current owners. He has found out a lot, but there are still details that need to be uncovered and clarified. Here is what he has discovered so far. Situated on the lane to the Devils’ Punchbowl, Highfield Farm is a timber-framed, smoke-bay house that dates from the second half of the 16th century when it was occupied by Richard Boxfold. From then, until 1951, it was owned by various landlords and has been the home of a succession of tenant farmers. By 1662 the chimney had been built and, during the next decade, a second fireplace was built upstairs in the bedchamber for which the tenant, Richard Haddington, was charged an extra 2 shillings per year in Hearth Tax. Perhaps it was to celebrate his latest home improvement that he burnt his initials on to the hearth beam with his cattle branding iron! In 1704, the farm was bought by the trustees of the newly founded Robert May’s School in Odiham. It was a small school with about 20 boys on roll and the rents of the farm went to maintain the building, to provide free education and to fund apprenticeships. The archives of the school record their stewardship of the farm, the continual need for maintenance and relations with its various tenants. Maria Karn came to the farm with her husband Joseph in 1822 and was widowed with two small children 10 years later. Their letters to the trustees reveal how Mr and Mrs Karn struggled to make a living and pay their rent during the agricultural depression that followed the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. The records show that Maria continued to run the farm through the “Hungry 30s”, supplementing her living by baking and selling bread. Upper Highfield was in the ownership of the school for more than 150 years until Mrs Karn left and the Cosford House estate bought the farm in 1857. Edward Baker and family at Upper Highfield Farm dated 1904. There were 10 children. Surnames of previous owners include: E Baker; J Baker; Wilton; Abels Studio portrait of Edward Baker probably with two of his daughters A series of short-term tenants followed until 1885 when Edward Baker came to the farm.In 1913, a folksong collector visited Edward and noted down three of his traditional songs, John Barleycorn, The Sweet Nightingale and The Cuckoo. It has been many decades since these songs, which reflect Mr Baker’s world and way of life, were sung within the walls of Upper Highfield Farm.  Edward Baker in the early 1930s. He was 91 when he died and he never went to church, not even to give his daughters away. From the Surrey Advertiser, 4th November 2005. Edward Baker remained at Upper Highfield until his death in the mid 1930s when his son, John, took on the tenancy.It says a lot for the continuity of rural life that he was farming the same 33 acres of land during the Second World War that were tenanted by Richard Boxfold four centuries earlier.  Edward and John Baker in the 1920's Miss E Baker John Baker Snr, plowing at Upper Highfield in the 1920's Philip Gorton is a professional researcher who specialises in the history of houses. A recent project is the history of Upper Highfield Farm. He would like to speak to anyone who may have family connections, memories or pictures of the farm or its former inhabitants.He is particularly keen to contact descendants of Edward Baker. If you are able to help in any way, he will be very grateful if you could contact him. Write to him at 11 Orchardfield Road, Godalming GU7 3PB or ring 01483 420763. His website is: www.house-history-research.co.uk Upper Highfield Farm as it is today Previous owners of Upper Highfield Farm include: Baker; Abels; Robertson; Leavitt; Anderson; Cooper; Axtell Art from a fallen beech try carved by Patrick Daw

In 1975, Margie Crawfurd and Georgina Harvey held an art exhibition at Thursley Village Hall as charity benefit. It was so popular that they continued to hold it annually for up to two weeks at a time until 1984. The exhibition consisted of work by artists and craftsmen from all over England, the large majority of whom were professionals. Over the years they managed to attract many leading figures in the arts and crafts, and as a consequence visitors to the exhibition came from far afield. We asked Georgina Harvey for her recollections and in February 2025 she wrote: The Thursley Exhibition began in 1975 as a fund raiser for the Thursley Conservative Association.   The idea was to get anyone in the village who had ever made, knitted, spun, sewn, weaved, carved, forged, thrown, blown, drawn, painted or whatever to show off their goods and skills.   The designated team consisted of artist Ros Kentish, Margie Crawfurd, Marion O’Brien & myself with Robert Tann being in charge of all things financial.  The Village Hall would be rented for 10 days at the end of September and a raffle and wine bar would cover expenses.    All committee members donated prizes and also helped man the hall during opening times.    The exhibition was open to anyone willing to pay the 10p entrance fee on Thursday & Friday evening and all day on the Saturday.   Sunday was the day to collect belongings or purchases and clean up the Hall. The exhibition seemed to grow exponentially and by the fourth year the political association was becoming a problem for some of the Artist and Craftsmen who were no longer locals.   For the next six years we had a keen viewing & spending public and exhibitors, some of which were more used to showing in London Galleries, still eager to show their work in our rural countryside.   The numbers and values increased and The Thursley Village Hall became a veritable hub of excellence in the regional autumn arts calendar.   Our Competition Judges were distinguished members of the Arts Scene and gave us credentials beyond our expectations.    It was time for a change.     For ten years The Thursley Exhibition had been able to have exclusive use of the Village Hall (which by 1984 had increased from 5 to 45 days).   A Nursery School wanted a home and 41 years later there is still one there. Artists showing their art over the years included: Nicholas Dimbleby - sculptor Mary Fedden - painter Paul Gunn - painter Ken Howard - oils John Makepiece - furniture Susan May - Jeweller Lorne McKean - bronze sculptures Bernard Myers - printmaker Charles Normandale - iron gate William Pye - a sculptor known particularly for his water sculptures Guy Taplin - driftwood birds Carel Weight - oils Mary Wondrausch - pottery Along with: Thursley's very own residents Salli Tomlinson (artist) and Peter Hanauer (handblown glass) An example of Salli's work: a musical artwork that opens up and reveals boxes within which also open and play music: painted on boards and approximately 1M x 1M Examples of Pete Hanauer's glass blowing which are exhibited in the V & A Museum Robert Tann, Margie Crawfurd, Alice Harvey and Georgie Harvey It reached national prominence in 1982 when it was covered by The Field, and this is an extract from their piece: Art and Craft Ascending The Rise and Rise of a Village Exhibition in Surrey. The Thursley Village Exhibition is now seven years old. It was started as a charity benefit and grew into an informal showcase for artists and craftsmen all over the south of England. Its stature is now such that it can shake hands on equal terms with established galleries. The setting is a Victorian hall in Thursley, a Surrey village which was once a centre of iron making and where one can still see the iron pits and hammer ponds. Nearly 200 paintings and sculptures by 50 artists as well as furniture, silver, glass, ceramics and bookbinding will be exhibited from 25 September – 3 October. Among the equestrian artists is Juliet Jeffrey who is showing a hunting scene from an unusual angle. “It was my own first view of the hunt, looking through the horses’ legs with the hounds bounding in. When they set off it becomes a blur with the flurry of hounds and horses coming and coming and it is this I have tried to capture”. Her other paintings depict Appleby Horse Fair, the big gypsy fair held every June, and one of her favourite subjects – pony sales at which the groups of ponies provide a very paintable series of patterns. Juliet Jeffrey has also illustrated several books including one of Gypsy Poems and Ballads. For some years she was married to Peter Ingram, one of the five gypsy waggon builders in the country and has painted a considerable oeuvre of gypsy life in a style which is an interesting blend of realism with abstract undertones. Paintings of people with their favourite horses and other animals, once the mainstay of the itinerant artist, is again becoming a popular art form. The resurgence of interest of this type of portraiture takes the equestrian artist Susie Whitcombe as far as Australia where she goes to paint animals, for some of the big livestock owners. Miss Whitcombe’s oil on canvas Summer Afternoon, Frensham, in this exhibition depicts three gleaming coated ponies reflected in the limpid waters of a large pond framed in trees and bushes (most likely Frensham Great or Little Pond – Ed). Earlier, in 1980, a press release from the exhibition organiser’s read: For the last six years the Thursley Exhibition has encouraged local artists to exhibit their work. During this period, the organisers have steadily improved the standard of work submitted, kept overheads down and prices low. This year in a bold step to raise the quality again, the organisers have invited a number of artists/craftsmen, who, whilst having local connections, exhibit widely. William Pye is one of our country’s leading sculptors. He will exhibit a stainless-steel work in the garden and his” Californian Bronzes” in the hall. John Donald is designing a collection of ten pieces of jewellery especially for this exhibition. Faith Shannon, from Puttenham, who has just been awarded an Arts Council grant, will exhibit a book she has bound, and her husband, Sandy Mackilligan, a piece of furniture. Lorne Mackean, whose bronzes are in the royal collection (seen in the forefront of the photographs below – Ed) , has something at the foundry for us and George Taylor, one of Edward Barnsley’s protegees, will exhibit some wood carvings. From Thursley itself we have Peter Hanauer’s glass bowl, Salli Tomlinson’s “Companions”, as seen on television recently, and the work of the Thursley weavers. Among our favourites at the Royal Academy this summer were Joyce O’Shea, from Godalming, Christopher Harrison from Cranleigh and Cavendish Morton from the Isle of Wight. All will be showing at the exhibition. Introductory page and frontispiece for the 1984 exhibition, the last to be held 1983 Unknown publication 1982 The Field Magazine, 1982 1981 1980 The Herald, Friday, October 3rd, 1980 1979

Photographs, please! The central focus for the year was the Jubilee weekend in June 2002 which began with a classical music concert in the gardens at Buckingham Palace. There was a Jubilee Church Service at St George's Chapel in Windsor and a National Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral which followed a Ceremonial Procession from Buckingham Palace. Events culminated in a pop concert at Buckingham Palace with performers including Paul McCartney, Bryan Adams, Elton John and Shirley Bassey. The evening ended with a spectacular firework display and The Queen lighting the National Beacon, the last in a string of 2,006 beacons which had been lit in a chain across the Commonwealth. It was much more difficult to track down much information on how the Golden Jubilee was celebrated in Thursley despite it being only twenty-two years ago. It was noted “That on Saturday the 1st June, there will be a Thursley Village party – a pig roast, jazz and fun for all the family in the Village Hall”. And so, it was to be. A fantastic whole village feast was prepared. Long tables were set up, bunting was hung and young and old enjoyed a day of sunshine, celebrations and commemorations for our dearly loved Queen.

6 February 2017 marked 65 years since The Queen acceded to the throne, becoming the first British Monarch to mark their Sapphire Jubilee. To coincide with the occasion Buckingham Palace re-released a photograph of Her Majesty taken by David Bailey in 2014. In the photograph, The Queen is wearing a suite of sapphire jewellery given to her by King George VI as a wedding gift in 1947.

1902 January 1902 1907 1909 1908 1916 January 1960 This 16pp magazine can be downloaded below: April 1981

The country and Thursley turned out in force! The village's celebrations were many and varied. There was a classic car and tractor show: Camilla Daubeney's Coffee Pod did a roaring trade James Maclean generously provided a HUGE digger in which you had to pick up and egg and put it in a frying pan!: A game of cricket, of course: A huge hog-roast at the Three Horseshoes And a Tug-o-War! Here is another set of wonderful photographs by Andrew Kaplanovsk

The Diamond Jubilee in 2012 celebrated the 60 years since the accession and was marked with a spectacular central weekend and a series of regional tours throughout the UK and Commonwealth. Photograph from The New York Times The central weekend began with The Queen’s visit to the Epsom Derby on the Saturday. On the Sunday, ‘Big Jubilee Lunches’ were held across the UK: building on the already popular ‘Big Lunch’ initiative, people were encouraged to share lunch with neighbours and friends as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations. The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant also took place on the Sunday, with up to 1,000 boats assembled on the Thames from across the UK, the Commonwealth and around the world. The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh travelled in the Royal Barge which formed the centrepiece of the flotilla. On the Monday, a host of famous faces came together to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee against the backdrop of Buckingham Palace for a concert organised by Take That singer and songwriter Gary Barlow for the BBC. Performers included Will.i.am, Stevie Wonder, Grace Jones and Kylie Minogue. Following the concert, The Queen lit the National Beacon: one of a network of 2,012 Beacons which were lit by communities and individuals throughout the UK, Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the Commonwealth. In Thursley, as is tradition now, again a large marquee was erected in the garden of the village hall and a feast of pig roast was served to all villagers: