Focus Magazines The local magazines for Abergavenny, Crickhowell, Brecon & Talgarth – Events, News and Advertising

Monthly Archives: August 2014

Pan Roast Salmon, Curried Cockle Risotto with Peas & Shoots

This month’s chef recipe comes courtesy of Peterstone Court Hotel. This recipe would make a fantastic summertime dinner party dish – bursting with the flavours of the sea, matched beautifully with a hint of curry. Delicious. Cooking time 18-20 minutes Serves 4 people Ingredients 500g arborio rice 1 large onion finely diced 2 cloves of […]

Top chefs heading for ‘Best Event in Wales’

Marcus Verberne, Head Chef at ‘Roast’

Last year the Abergavenny Food Festival won the accolade ‘Best Event in Wales’ (National Tourism Awards 2013), so the bar has been set high for 2014. This year’s programme won’t disappoint. The Festival takes place over the weekend of 20 and 21 September and box office is now live at abergavennyfoodfestival.com. The special events programme […]

Abergavenny to host Mardi Gras weekend

The second annual wall2wall music festival returns to Abergavenny this August, with a stunning line up promised including some of the biggest names in UK jazz and more. Topping the bill will be multi-award winning Jacqui Dankworth who will be on tour with her latest album, the spectacular National Youth Jazz Orchestra famed for their […]

Growing in Llangattock

The Llangattock Horticultural Society was formed in 1922.  Its aims were “to promote and improve the cultivation of Flowers, Fruit and Vegetables, and to encourage neat and good gardening amongst Cottagers etc.” The Society evolved over the years and the Llangattock Annual Show became a major event involving not only a horticultural event with flowers, […]

Usk Show 2014

This year is 170 years since the first Usk Show.  In 1844 the show started as a ploughing match for Usk Farmers’ Club members and today it has grown to be one of the busiest one-day agricultural shows in the UK. Always held on the Second Saturday in September (13th September this year) and held […]

Steaming into the future

When the first railways arrived in town it was All Change in more ways than one. Helen Morgan from Abergavenny Local History Society reports In the mid-19th century Abergavenny was a mess. Filthy streets, dodgy water and erratic gas supplies were the norm. But in 1853, a group of local tradesmen took action and, during […]

Book Review: The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

Inspired by a real doll house, built by the 17th century noblewoman Petronella Oortman and designed to reflect her own life, Jessie Burton has taken the idea and run with it to create a wonderfully atmospheric novel about a fictional heroine and her own doll house. The original can be seen in the Rijksmuseum in […]

Ready, Set, BAKE!

We all know about the agricultural and horticultural classes at Village and County shows, but what about the homecrafts and baking categories? These are as much a part of fayres, fetes and shows as prize-winning runner beans. Nevertheless, entering one of these classes can feel a little intimidating, especially considering all the rules and guidelines […]

Film Review: Blackfish

Patty Papageorgiou-Axford gives us her take on this challenging documentry A documentary feature is rarely first choice on a list of an evening’s entertainment, which is not surprising, considering the usually heavier subject matter the genre tends to cover. Documentaries generally aim to inform, expose, investigate and question numerous aspects of our society. A great […]

St Edmund’s Church, Crickhowell plans for a bright future

A plan to transform the way it serves its parish is taking shape at the 700 year old St Edmund’s Church, Crickhowell. The staff will be augmented to meet the needs of both ends of the age spectrum and its building made more useful for services as well as more extensive community use. A small […]

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