That's all folks

Well, two years after the idea first emerged to create our own Calendar Girls-style charity calendar we have wound up the fund and handed over a final cheque for £2,560.39 to the Midlands Chairman of Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. In total we raised £2649.89, including donations made on our Just Giving page which went straight to the charity.

John Purser kindly travelled down from Coventry to Burton-on-Trent last night to meet as many of the Calendar Girls who could make it and take possession of the cheque.

With us were Little Theatre Company's chairman Peter Clemson and Artistic Director John Bowness - because obviously we could not have done it without them. It was their decision to stage the play Calendar Girl which inspired us to create our own calendar and raise as much as we could for the charity that is fighting to beat all blood cancers. They supported all our publicity efforts and let us launch the calendar at last September's Little Theatre Company Playathon day.

We'd also like to thank our talented photographer and calendar designer Tilley Bancroft and make-up artist Sheelagh Powell who supported us at last summer's photoshoot. Thanks also to Sara of BraSense who supported us with secret underwear during show week!

We would like to thank the people of Burton who gave to our fund so generously. We know times are hard and lots of good causes are competing for donations - so we are grateful for every penny given by the audiences who came to our show week in March 2013 as well as those who bought the calendar.

Thanks to our MP Andrew Griffiths who was quick to ask how he could help and posed for a photo with us when he bought a calendar to hang in his office at the House of Commons.

Thanks to George Gunby who sold our calendars at his Calendar Club stall in Cooper's Square in the run-up to Christmas and Pint Arts Festival who let us have a stall at their craft fair and the Burton town centre management who let us have a stand at the Christmas lights switch on.

Thanks to Sarah Spencer, who was a superbly organised treasurer, and all the other Calendar Girls who played their part in making the project a success and beating our original target of £2,500.

It's been an unforgettable experience.

WE DID IT!!!

Well, what a week we had at The Brewhouse in Burton-on-Trent last week.

Virtually every seat was sold for Little Theatre Company's six performances of Tim Firth's play Calendar Girls and the feedback from our audiences was fabulous. They laughed, they cheered, they burst into spontaneous applause and they shed a few tears too - moved by the story of Annie and John Clarke (Matt Bancroft and Vicky Fryer) and Annie's fiesty friend Chris (Heather Ratcliffe).

But there was plenty of comedy too - from the hapless Ruth (Elaine Pritchard) and her doomed efforts to create still life with fir cones and fancy dress for the summer fete, and her mismatched badminton night with WI Chairman Marie (Carol Brown). And who will forget guest speaker Brenda Hulse (Sonja Wardle) and her talk on the history of broccoli, Lady Cravenshire (Sarah Spencer) and her ponderings on the architectural origins of Knapeley Church and of course retired schoolteacher Jessie (Bethan Waite) irate at being asked to arrange flowers for a landowner's wife and her encounter with the excruciatingly patronising beautician (Caitlin Pritchard)?

When it came to "SCENE SIX", the calendar photoshoot itself, the ladies all agreed it was less stressful in the end than managing fast backstage costume changes and remembering a host of props. Single mother and church organist Cora (Vanessa Birch) showed off a tattoo (but it was temporary) and photographer Lawrence (Daniel Tunks) had the audience in stitches as he finally realised Jessie was his old school teacher. Trophy wife Celia (Hannah Mason) stirred him to anger when she moved his carefully arranged composition of buns - leading to one of the most eagerly-anticipated lines each night (sometimes we could hear members of the audience join in with Chris to announce): "We are going to need CONSIDERABLY bigger buns".

The girls got lots of support and help in the photoshoot scene from other members of Knapeley WI - Joyce  Pike, Jodie Durbin, Jane German, Kay St Clair and Dawn White.

Finally to complete the cast we had Liam (Rob Tunley) tasked with shooting a washing powder commercial with the girls, and Rod (Mark Pearson), Chris's long-suffering husband.

But last week was also about us striving to reach our challenging target of raising £2,500 for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research - and, WE DID IT!! As I write, the total on our Just Giving Page stands at £2,649.89

It was thanks to a lot of people that we made this impressive total.

...Thanks to all those who donated raffle prizes - including The Mug Tug, in Barton-under-Needwood, who also surprised cast members with specially created, hand-painted jugs at the after-show party!

...Thanks to those who staffed the raffle stall in the Brewhouse bar at each performance selling raffle tickets and taking donations for our calendars and our crochet calendar girls.

...Thanks to the audience members who gave so generously.

...Thanks to Sarah Spencer - who was the Burton Calendar Girls finance chief throughout and sat up after each performance last week counting coins and texting the latest total to the girls.

..Thanks to the cast of the UK touring production of Calendar Girls who donated an autographed calendar and other memorabilia as raffle prizes.

...Thanks, of course, to the uber-talented Tilley Bancroft of Red Door Studios whose vision for the 2013 calendar we shot last summer made it such a beautiful piece of work.

...Thanks to Sara of Bra Sense and make-up artist Sheelagh  Powell who generously gave up time and products.... and all those who sold calendars for us.

There are also many, many thank you's associated with the play itself:

• Our amazing director John Bowness 
• Soundtrack supremo Peter Clemson
• The hard-working set crew who built Knapeley Village Hall for us
• Musical director Jack Hawkins
• Karen Hailstone for continuity
• Ben Yeomans for lighting
• Katie Haywood - and the cast - for props
• Geoff Thompson for photography
• The BADAC volunteers who staffed the bar each night
• Janet Plummer and Pam Anderson for selling programmes and staffing the coffee bar
• Little Theatre Company's private and corporate patrons - who help make our productions possible
• Brewhouse box office staff who stayed calm under a deluge of phone calls trying to get last minute tickets.
• The Burton Mail for pre-show publicity.

So, the adventure is finally over. Thank you for following our blog. Our JustGiving Page will stay open until the end of March 2013 to enable any late donations to be gathered in and then we'll be organising the handover of the money to the charity which is fighting so hard to cure blood cancers.

Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research has always been associated with the play since the real life calendar girls of  Yorkshire began fundraising for a settee for their local cancer ward following the death of the real John Clarke. Who could have imagined where that decision was going to lead?

Although there's such an important and serious point to the fund raising we have had so many laughs along the way with our photoshoot and last week's shows. I hope we brought a little sunshine into your life too.

Set up Sunday for Burton Calendar Girls

It may be Mother's Day today - but lots of the LTC ladies were only too happy to come in to The Brewhouse at Burton-on-Trent and share the excitement of creating our beautiful set and organising costumes and props for our production of Calendar Girls which runs from March 12-16.

Many hands made light work of it and most of us had a few hours off this afternoon before returning tonight for the first dress rehearsal.

Here's a shot looking down from the auditorium seats as the home of the fictional Knapeley Womens' Institute took shape on the stage.

Cora's piano is wheeled into position.

Ruth's marmalade table takes shape.

John's sunflowers really DO look lovely

Adjustments are made to the famous buns by director John

We've also been collecting some great prizes for the raffles. There will be a separate raffle at every performance with hosts of prizes including some lovely Victorian porcelain dolls, some cheeky crocheted Calendar Girl dolls and a series of vouchers offering a free 'paint-a-pot' experience for two people courtesy of Little Theatre Company patron Lesley of The Mug Tug at Barton-under-Needwood.

All the proceeds from the nightly raffle will boost our fundraising total for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

Show-goers will also be able to collect a souvenir edition of our 2013 calendar in return for a donation to the fund.

Tickets have sold really well for our show, but there are some single seats left if you want to catch this heart-warming story. Ring the Brewhouse box office on 01283 508100 to check availability.

HERE COME THE GIRLS!

Two years after John told us we would be doing the play Calendar Girls - if we were 'up for it' - which led us to decide to start our own fundraising drive for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research ..... SHOW WEEK IS FINALLY HERE!!

Today we'll be at our venue, The Brewhouse, Union Street, Burton-on-Trent, organising props and dressing the set ahead of a first dress rehearsal tonight.

So, there's not much time to stay on here and blog - but I'll be back later to tell you more and maybe share some pictures of the final preparations.

Also watch out for updates and images on our Twitter feed - twitter.com/LTCCalendarGirl

Two weeks to opening night of Calendar Girls in Burton-on-Trent

So, it's now just over two weeks until opening night of our production of Calendar Girls at The Brewhouse in Burton-on-Trent.

But it's two YEARS since we first heard that we would be staging the comedy play and came up with the idea of fundraising for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research through our own charity calendar.

This week our publicity drive got a welcome boost with a story in the Burton Mail which reminded people that there will be a raffle every night of the show's run to boost our fund raising total which currently stands at £1,386.

Among the items we will be raffling off are copies of the signed good luck messages we received from the cast of the UK touring production of Calendar Girls - including Ruth Madoc, Sue Holderness, Lesley Joseph, Kacey Ainsworth, Helen Fraser, Camilla Dallerup and many more.

Then there will also be our infamous crocheted calendar girl dolls - though if anyone wants to put in a bid to buy one of them for charity we might consider it! Our challenging target is to raise £2,500 by the end of March 2013 - and we would LOVE to make it.

Tickets for the play - which runs from March 12-March 16 - are going fast with some shows already sold out. Latest news on ticket availability can be obtained by telephoning the Brewhouse Box Office on 01283-508100. But if you are too late to get a ticket you can still pop down to the Brewhouse any night of the show and enjoy a drink at the bar and buy a raffle ticket or make a donation. Each day there will be a different raffle with winning tickets drawn during the second half of the show. Copies of our calendar - sure to be a collectors' item in future years! - can also still be acquired in return for a donation.

Thanks to the friends of LTC and the members of LTC Youth who have volunteered to sell raffle tickets in the bar each night and at the Saturday 2.30pm matinee.

If you would like to support our efforts but can't get to the Brewhouse during show week you can still donate at the Burton Calendar Girls Just Giving page

Every penny will make a difference in these last few weeks so please spread the word about us on social media - help us get more fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter.

Burton Belles, and a bit of burlesque

As you know, the play Calendar Girls - which we are performing at Burton's Brewhouse from March 12-16, 2013 - focuses on the WI.
We loved visiting Egginton WI last year to talk about our experience of creating our own charity Calendar Girls calendar.
Next month, on February 13, we're talking to another WI group - this time the Burton Belles who meet in the town centre at the St John Ambulance HQ.
The Burton Belles are also turning out in force to come and see opening night of our play in March.
So we were thrilled to see them getting a mention in an article in the Daily Express about the changing face of the WI.

You can read the full article here.

Burton Belles are a great example of a modern WI and the feature refers to one of their events - a Burlesque dance evening. 

The Burton Belles website is here - and I'm sure they would love to see any ladies of any age at a future meeting to find out more about their group.

Thanks to everyone for your continued support. You may have seen that this week we past the £1,250 mark with our fund raising for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. Our fund raising will continue through to the end of March 2013. 

If you'd like to help you can:

• Text 'BCGS90 £1' to 700700 - to donate £1 to our fund. It will go straight to the charity and you'll even have an opportunity to add gift aid if you wish.
• Visit our JustGiving page at http://www.justgiving.com/BurtonCalendarGirls to donate any amount safely and securely online.
• Buy a calendar for just £5 - find out how on our How To Buy A Calendar page.
• Buy a ticket for one of our shows in March. There will be a chance to donate any loose change in collecting buckets on the bar or buy a ticket in our nightly raffle where prizes on certain nights will include signed pictures donated by the professional cast of Calendar Girls. Tickets for the play can be bought via the Brewhouse box office - call in person or ring 01283-508100 - or book online at http://www.ticketsource.co.uk/littletheatreco. There's NO booking fee.

Happy New Year - from Miss January

Here's hoping that 2013 is a wonderful year for you all.

'Miss January' had a bit of a shock when she realised that she was now actually on peoples' walls! After all these months of planning and preparations since the photoshoot last summer it's still a bit of a surprise to realise it's now a reality.

If you haven't got a calendar yet - the great news is that you can now buy one for just £5 in our January sale.

Or, if you would just like to recognise our courage and support the wonderful charity that is Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research you would be very welcome to make a donation at our Just Giving page.

We are thrilled that we're now very close to raising our first £1,000 - but we have set an ambitious target of £2,500 by the time we reach the end of our show week when we perform the play Calendar Girls at the Burton Brewhouse from March 12-16.

We do have some more fundraising events planned for early 2013 and you'll hear about them here on our blog.
If you still want a calendar, email elaine@little-theatre.co.uk to arrange when and where to collect one if you are local to Burton. Or they can still be obtained by mail order if you live further afield. Find out more on our How to Buy A Calendar Page on this blog.

*You can support out Just Giving Page - it's safe and secure and the money goes straight to the charity - at http://www.justgiving.com/BurtonCalendarGirls

Instructions now available if you want to crochet a Calendar Girl

There's been a flurry of interest from people who want to crochet a calendar girl.

So we've now made the instructions - created originally by Tilley Bancroft of Red Door Studios - available for ANYONE to obtain from us.

All we'd like in return is a stamped addressed envelope - to send your instructions back to you without us incurring any postage charges - and a small donation to our ongoing fund for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

You should post your stamped addressed envelope to:
Burton Calendar Girls
87 Meadow View
Rolleston-on-Dove
Burton-on-Trent
Staffordshire DE13 9AL.

You can either enclose a small donation - whatever you can afford - or you can make a small donation online safely and securely at our Just Giving page - http://www.justgiving.com/BurtonCalendarGirls

We'd LOVE to know how you get on - so do leave us a comment on the blog.

Happy crocheting!

Rehearsing - and crocheting

Rehearsals are now underway for our March 2013 production of Calendar Girls - the play - at The Brewhouse in Burton-on-Trent. I haven't forgotten that I promised you casting news, and that will follow.

Crcoheting calendar girls is also underway - with mixed results.

Our photographer, Tilley, who also appears in our October shot, has recruited her mum to the cause - and she's doing brilliantly.

Other people have made a promising start....

But the end result in this case was a rather over-sized and (frankly) deeply unattractive crocheted 'girl'.

If you know the play Calendar Girls it may come as no surprise that THIS delightful diva was created by the lady playing 'Ruth' - she of the handmade fancy dress costume etc... who means well but never quite manages to win any prizes.

She's now on crocheted doll number 2 which looks good so far..... I think she's learned from her mistakes, and maybe the canine encouragement helped.

If you would like to join the 'crochet a calendar girl' drive we can send you out some instructions in return for a small donation to the cause.

You can donate to our fund for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research easily and quickly online at http://www.justgiving.com/BurtonCalendarGirls Any small donation this festive season would be welcome.

You can also buy one of our calendar for just £8 - if you are able to collect one in person from us in Burton-on-Trent - or we can mail them out for an additional charge to cover postage and packing. See our How to Buy A Calendar page for more information.

Crochet your own Burton Calendar Girl

It's amazing the ideas that percolate in a dressing room when a bunch of Little Theatre Company ladies are dressed as nuns for The Sound of Music.

Maybe those wimples overheated our heads, but as we watched 'Sister Tilley' crochet backstage to pass the time between bouts of acapella four-part harmony singing in Latin the idea of crocheting our own calendar girls emerged.

Tilley (that woman's talents know NO bounds) is a crochet expert extraordinary as well as a top class animator, designer and photographer at Red Door Studios. She - remember - took ALL the photos for our beautiful calendar and designed the pages and got everything ready for the printers.

Well, she quickly whipped up a sample doll overnight.

... and she soon had a couple of friends.

Last night, at the first read through of our production of Calendar Girls the play - on at The Brewhouse, in Burton-on-Trent, in March 2013 - Tilley distributed wool, a pattern she's created and a crochet hook to all the girls to start crocheting their own calendar girls.

Watch this space for news of our progress. We hope that by March we'll have a full set of Burton Calendar Girls which we would raffle off during show week - along with the signed memorabilia from the professional cast of Calendar Girls - to raise more money to add to our funds being raised for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research

If anyone gets a bit obsessed and carried away with this craft project (YOU KNOW WHO I'M THINKING OF, GIRLS!!) then any extra dolls may be for sale in the bar during the show week. Or auctioned to the highest bidder, even!

If anyone out there who loves crafts and crocheting wants to join us, leave us a message here or on our Facebook page and I'm sure we can get you a copy of the pattern so you can join in the fun.

Now here, for the benefit of the crocheting calendar girls, are a series of video tutorials that Tilley has found time to record (I wonder if she ever sleeps?) which will help you. They are also quite useful to anyone else who wants to hone their crocheting skills.














Meanwhile, a quick reminder that our calendars are STILL on sale priced at £8 each - a great idea for a Christmas gift that gives to such an important charity dedicated to beating blood cancers. Find out how to buy one at our How To Buy A Calendar page.

You can alternatively (or as well as) make a small donation of whatever you can afford at our Just Giving Page - http://www.justgiving.com/BurtonCalendarGirls

Hot news! Burton Calendar Girls are on Just Giving

I've just set up my first-ever page on Just Giving. What a great system that is for raising funds for charity.

Did you know that the money you donate through Just Giving goes STRAIGHT to your chosen charity - in our case that's Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

We found in the last week or so that a lot of people who visit our stalls at events like to pop some small change in our collecting tin - so we thought that a Just Giving Page would be an easy and 100% secure way for people further afield to contribute to our cause.

So the big question now is - who is going to make the first donation? Go to - http://www.justgiving.com/BurtonCalendarGirls if you would like it to be you!

By George! A new calendar retail outlet

We're very grateful to George Gunby - a familiar face in Burton town centre at this time every year - who runs the Calendar Club stall outside Boots in the middle of the Cooper's Square Shopping Centre.

George has agreed to display our Burton Calendar Girls calendar and sell it alongside the huge range of calendars and diaries he already stocks.

So do pop down and buy a copy from him if you've not bought yours yet.

Our full colour calendar costs £8 and is raising money for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research - 

the only UK charity solely dedicated to research into blood cancers, including leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

From nuns to nudes

It's been a hectic week since the PINT craft fayre with many of the Burton Calendar Girls playing nuns in Little Theatre Company's production of The Sound of Music.

Carol, Vicky and Chris have been selling our calendars in the bar before and after all the performances - and special mention must go to our good friend, and honorary Calendar Girl, Kate who achieved record sales on Thursday night.

The nuns have been having a great time backstage. Some of them follow very suitable nun-like pursuits - like our bible-reading 'Sister' Dawn, a Miss March.

Others sit in quiet contemplation and do a spot of crocheting. Like Sister Cait (a Miss December) and Sister Tilley (a Miss October).

Pausing to occasionally burst into song.

But soon we'll be saying 'goodbye' to Nonnberg Abbey and 'hello' to Calendar Girls rehearsals.

The cast has been announced - and we'll bring you the news about that in the coming weeks. Rehearsals for our March 2013 production of Calendar Girls start on Tuesday November 27.

Tomorrow, after helping take down the set and pack away the costumes, we'll be selling our calendars at the official switch-on of Burton-on-Trent's Christmas lights. Come and find us in the market place.

Then, on Wednesday three of us are guest speakers at Egginton WI.

Meanwhile, please support our efforts to raise as much money as possible for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. Donations are always welcome if (for any reason) you don't want a calendar.

Find out the latest places to buy a calendar by clicking the link at the top of this page called "How To Buy A Calendar".

As you know, our calendar reflects a theatrical theme, and as we've not given away any secrets from the calendar so far - here's the December shot of us all looking over programmes from past Little Theatre Company shows. From nuns to nudes...... it's all in a day's work for the Burton Calendar Girls.

Burton Calendar Girls reach America

Elaine here, reporting that a link to our Burton Calendar Girls blog has appeared on a website about pets and crafting in the USA.

You may know that Carol - who writes many of these blog posts - is a talented quilter who has made beautiful bags and quilts for friends and family and also donated them as much sought-after prizes for Little Theatre Company raffles.

Knowing about my blog for Winnie the Greyhound she made me a special bag from material decorated with dogs which I offered as a prize on Winnie's blog - and it was won by Lori who writes a lovely blog called What Remains Now.
Lori knew that Carol and I were working together on the Calendar Girls calendar project so generously gave us a mention and a link when the bag arrived with her in Indiana.

Lori loves the bag - and Carol loves that it's found such a good home in America. Random acts of kindness are great, aren't they?

Meanwhile, if you know any blogs or websites who might like to link to us - do give us a shout. The more people who know about us and buy a calendar the more we can raise for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research - a charity working so hard to beat blood cancers.

Tomorrow, tomorrow, is only a day away......

Tomorrow, September 1^st is a very exciting and  long awaited day for the LittleTheatre Company ladies, it’s the day we launch our Calendar Girls calendar. This has been such an interesting journey for all of us and we’re delighted that finally everyone will be able to see what we’ve achieved.  Coincidentally tomorrow is also the day that the amateur rights to the play “Calendar Girls” is being released. Little Theatre Company are delighted that they’re able to perform this wonderfully inspiring play in March 2013.

For those who don’t  know the story the play was written and based on a true story. Because of  Beryl Balmforth, one of the original Calendar Girls  and Grassington Players member, the Yorkshire Dales amateur theatre company have the honour of being the first company to perform Calendar Girls, tonight, Friday 31^st August, the day before the official amateur rights are released.

Mrs Balmforth will not appear in this production but she said that as a story beginning in the Yorkshire Dales she felt it only fitting that it should start its amateur life there. John Baker, whose death in 1998 inspired the original calendar was also a member of Grassington Players. The Little Theatre Company and our own Calendar Girls wish Grassington Players “Break a leg” for tonight’s  performance, it will  undoubtedly be especially poignant for them.

We hope that people will pop into the Brewhouse tomorrow from 10am until 10pm when they can enjoy  the wonderful  entertainment provided at Little Theatre Company's   Playathon and of course buy  your Calendars hot off the press.

Calendars are priced at £8. We can accept cash or cheques but not card payments unfortunately.

We look forward to seeing  everyone then.

To carry an Olympic torch

Our Calendar is raising money for the Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research Association – which works to find cures for these blood cancers – but there are many other wonderful charities working in similar fields.

Today Elaine and myself met with Ian Leech one of the Olympic torch bearers. To be chosen to do this is such an honour and Ian was awarded this honour for his huge efforts in raising awareness for the Lymphoma Association

Ian lost his daughter Melissa in May 2008 to non Hodgkins Lymphoma at the age of 20. During Mel’s battle both he and Mel wrote blogs as a way of dealing with their battle and to raise awareness. Many people seem aware of Leukaemia but much less so with Lymphoma.  After losing his beloved daughter Mel, Ian put all his efforts into finding ways to deal with his loss and so his journey began.

Lymphoma is the 5^th largest cancer diagnosis and is most common in people under 30. The Lymphoma Association supports  anyone affected by lymphoma, friends, family and carers. They only deal with lymphoma and have an online site with forums and message boards for people who are looking for support and information.  Ian published a wonderful book in memory of Mel called “One day at a time- Mel’s story” and has his own website www.mad4mel.co.uk.

Ian explained that being  given the honour of carrying the Olympic torch has given him the opportunity to visit many schools and talk about why he was chosen. He has also been a key speaker at many events which has enabled him to spread the word more widely about the LymphomaAssociation. He also give his time generously to many other charities and has a cycle ride from London to Paris coming up which would have been Mel’s 25^th birthday.

We wish Ian every success in his future ventures to spread the word and make people more aware of the Lymphoma Association.

Countdown to calendar launch

In recent years the Little Theatre Company - of which all the Burton Calendar Girls are proud to be members - has held a 'Playathon' every two years as our main fund-raising event for the company.

This year, as before, we'll be taking over the Brewhouse, in Union Street, Burton-on-Trent, for 12 hours between 10am and 10pm on Saturday September 1, and offering non-stop entertainment by our members.

And we can also reveal that this will also be the day when our calendar will launch!. It will be the first chance for anyone in Burton to buy one of these calendars - so if you pop in to the Brewhouse any time between 10am and 10pm you can snap up the first available calendars.

ALL the proceeds from the sale of these calendars will go to Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. None of the money is going to LTC funds - but we thought by launching the calendar on Playathon day we could have 12 hours of non-stop calendar selling too to get this charity project off to a flying start.

We would also love to see as many of you as possible at our Playathon on September 1. Admission is completely FREE - but we will be running an all-day tombola for Little Theatre Company funds. Entertainment will include lots of comedy sketches and music from a couple of our recent musical shows. There will also be a two-hour 1940s section with music, dancing and 1940s fun from 4.30pm to 6.30pm. The Brewhouse bar will be open and there will be coffee and cake, of course (See, with the Calendar Girls there's ALWAYS coffee and cake). We look forward to seeing you all. 

The touring company is coming to Derby

If you've never seen the professional production of Calendar girls then you're in for a treat, it's coming to Derby in September this year. Many of us in the Little Theatre Company went to see this production last year at Nottingham and it's a stellar cast and one not to be missed. Check out Derby Live for full dates and prices.

Calendar Girls by Tim Firth

The global phenomenon comes to Derby

Calendar Girls has been the fastest selling tour ever and has triumphed in the West End. Now, it's coming to Derby starring Lesley Joseph as Miss October, Sue Holderness as Miss February, Ruth Madoc as Miss March, Kathryn Rooney as Miss September, Camilla Dallerup as Miss May, Helen Fraser as Miss January, Deena Payne as Miss July and Kacey Ainsworth as Miss November, with Kevin Sacre as Lawrence the photographer
A group of ordinary women do something extraordinary and spark a global phenomenon when they persuade one another to pose for a charity calendar with a difference! Based on an inspiring true story and the smash hit film, Calendar Girls is quirky, poignant and hilarious. Calendar Girls has sold out in every theatre it's visited before opening. Don't miss out and book today for the show the Mail on Sunday said is "marvellous theatre, guaranteed to make you laugh, cry and come out singing Jerusalem!"
"A show I could see over and over again - and I hope I will!" Sir Cliff Richard
"Lots of laughs and a few tears. This show should be on everyone's calendar" June Whitfield CBE
"Funny, charming and a touching tribute to the fundraising efforts of a group of extraordinary, ordinary women" Ian Hislop

Great Hall

Monday 24 September to Saturday 29 September

7.30pm, Wed & Sat Matinee 2.30pm

Tickets: £15.25 - £28.25. Mon–Thu evening/Sat Mat £17.25–£26.25, Fri & Sat evening £19.25–£28.25, Wed Mat £15.25–£23.25

Concessions: Tickets cost more when booked via telephone or in person at box office. See our Ts & Cs for details.

Book now

Almost there

Having decided on the 12 shots for the Calendar, Elaine, Tilley and myself had a get together last Friday to decide on the final layout of the Calendar. Tilley has designed the most wonderful front cover and we decided that the back cover would be "dressing gown" shots of each of us as we were preparing for our pictures to be taken. We wanted also to make sure that we thanked everyone that we needed to thank, some very wonderful and generous people have given their resources and their valuable time to make this the best it could be. Briefly, Tilley, Sheelagh and Elaine but so many more people we're very grateful to. We know that the finished Calendar will be something we will all be very proud of.

We had also decided that it would be nice if every lady had a souvenir of their own picture, so in a couple of weeks time we're all meeting at Tilley's Red Door Studios where everyone can see all the pictures taken and choose which one they'd like for posterity. We're anticipating that that will be a fun night and afterwards we shall be visiting a local hostelry to raise a glass to a job well done.

And Miss January is.........?

What a difficult task Elaine, Tilley and myself had last week. As is the norm Ken was on coffee duty and my dining room was the scene of some serious deliberations. Tilley had all the shots she'd taken and our task was to whittle them down to a few and then choose the best photograph of each pose. You'd think that would've been fairly easy to do, no such luck, every single picture taken could've gone in the Calendar, Tilley's pictures were unbelievable, the difference that her terrific lighting made without doubt, made every single shot.

 To put everything on a fair playing field and so that Elaine, Tilley and myself didn't get to choose our own pictures, Tilley and myself chose the shot of Elaine, to see Elaine sitting there hugging a teddy bear with an excrutiating look on her face while the two of us picked over her shots was hilarious, too bad I didn't have my camera to capture that expression. Of course then Tilley and I had to wait with bated breath while Elaine chose our shot. Two hours later and after much deliberation we finally had our 12 amazing poses.

And so to choose who should star in which month, our idea behind this was largely taken to make the calendar as interesting as possible, to fit in each month so that it flowed nicely with the month before and so here is the final selection.

January           -     Elaine
February         -     Joyce
March             -     Katie,Jane, Chris, Dawn
April               -     Hannah
May                -     Karen
June                -     Jodie and Sarah
July                 -    Vicky
August            -     Sonja
September      -     Bethan
October          -     Carol and Tilley
November       -     Heather
December       -     The Girls