Clwb Maglona Club

CLWB Maglona held their AGM on 28 January. Chair, Frank Dickens was unable to attend because of ill health and asked to be replaced as chairman as he felt he was unable to carry on. In the absence of any immediate volunteers, it was agreed to defer electing a new chair. In the interim, it was decided that Ruby Brennan, Muriel Evans and Sylvia Whittaker would cover the position between them. Due to the bank not returning the statements to the treasurer when switching banks, the treasurer was unable to give out the auditors’ signed copy of the accounts and it was hoped this would be forthcoming at the next meeting.

The treasurer and secretary Sylvia Whittaker and Ruby Brennan respectively were voted back for a further term.

Hearing aid service

THE next Hear to Help drop-in clinic in Machynlleth is this Friday, 5 February. NHS hearing-aid wearers can visit this Action on Hearing Loss Cymru service for friendly advice on their hearing aids, and for cleaning, new tubes, batteries and maintenance.Sessions are held at Machynlleth Care Centre, Forge Road (on the same site as the doctors’ surgery), from 10am-midday on the first Friday of each month.The free drop-in service is provided by two trained local volunteers, Helen Sandler and Margaret Vince.Helen said: “People like the fact that they don’t need an appointment and we can often save them a trip to Audiology. Margaret and I can usually help and if not, we can advise on where to go for help.”

Dyfi Probus

NOVEMBER’S speaker Bob Tyrrell took members back to the glory days of British motor racing with his talk on ‘Ken Tyrrell-Formula One legend’. These were the days of glamour; the days of Moss, Surtees, Hill, Stewart, Fittipaldi, Cooper, Hawthorn and Hunt - and of course, Ken Tyrrell.Bob told of how, after leaving the RAF, Ken began racing Formula 3. He progressed to Formula 2 but soon realised he was unlikely to crack Formula 1, so, in 1959, he turned to team management. Tyrrell racing ran the Cooper-BMC team and later in the year the Cooper F1 team. The rest as they say is history.Motor racing though was becoming increasingly professional, and costly. Eventually, this left no room for the ‘little man’ to get into the business which means, sadly, there will no more Tyrrells to grace the tracks of the twenty-first century.In February the speaker will be town and county councillor, Michael Williams, whose chosen subject is Local Government. Can there be a person more qualified?The 29 March meeting will be the AGM with in-house talks and on 26 April Illtyd Griffiths will be telling the group some of the ‘Recollections of a Retired Dentist’.

Royal British Legion

THE December meeting was held at the Bowling Club on Tuesday, 5 December, and opened by chairman Richie Jones. Exhortation was given in English by Anthony Jones and in Welsh by Richie Jones. The minutes of the October meeting and extra items after the AGM were read out by secretary Anthony Jones, and were proposed by Evelyn Jones and seconded by Sylvia Whittaker as a true record.President Sylvia Rowlands said that some businesses in town felt it was wrong to collect the poppy boxes in before armistice day on 11 November. Poppy organiser Stephen Doyle said they were always collected in on the Monday after remembrance Sunday, and they could not collect them in later because of the amount of money involved and access to the safety of the bank. Gwyn Roberts suggested RBL could ask the businesses to take the poppy boxes off the counter on 11 November until the branch can pick up the boxes. Stephen Doyle said we can discuss this item nearer the next poppy appeal in 2016.Anthony Jones said that Remembrance Sunday 2015 went well and thanked Reverend Canon Kath Rogers for the excellent service at the church and war memorial. Stephen Doyle thanked Major Ifan Price-Edwards for all the help he had given to the branch, and also thanked Gwyn Roberts for carrying the legion standard. Evelyn Jones thanked Betty Fleming for the buffet at the bowling club.Treasurer Marilyn Jones told the members that she is waiting to see if the HSBC bank has transferred the funds in the Nat West. Sylvia Whittaker told the mem-bers that it was the 200th anniversary of the Ghurkha Regiment. In the middle of their celebrations two earthquakes occurred, it killed many of them. Over 1,500 Ghurkha widows lost their homes. The branch will make a donation.Sylvia Rowlands thanked the branch for getting tickets for her, Elsbeth Mcauley, Anne Humphreys and Myra Francis to go to the Royal Albert Hall in London for the Festival of Remembrance. Sylvia said that they thoroughly enjoyed it and that it was very emotional.Major Ifan Price-Edwards told the members of a St David’s Day lunch on 5 March at the golf club, and legion members are invited. Menus and prices are available. He also mentioned to the members that the local army cadets has only one cadet left and unless anything is done soon the MOD are likely to close the drill hall. A recruitment drive will start in January to get more youngsters to join, all members of the branch said they would give their support, and help wherever they can.The branch decided not to have a meeting in January.

Dominoes

FORESTERS B’s canny players still held the trump cards during week 11’s round of fixtures in the Dyfi Valley Dominoes League but, closing up on the leaders, second-placed Slaters eased to within seven points of top spot.Table: Foresters B (81 pts.), Slaters (74), Dovey Inn (71), Red Lion A (71), White Horse (66), Penrhos (65), Red Lion B (62), Foresters A (61), Bowling Club (55), Wynnstay Llanbrynmair (54).

Exhibitions

FIVE new exhibitions were opened at the Tabernacle Museum of Modern Art Machynlleth on Saturday, 30 January.The Martin Tinney Gallery’s A Selection of Welsh Artists, Becky Thorley’s ‘Fox’s Estuary to Ocean-Painting the Edge’, Robert Bryce Muir’s ‘Unto The Self’, Robert Price’s ‘Fiosculus’ and works from the Tabernacle Collection can be viewed on Monday to Saturday from 10am-4pm. Entrance to the galleries is free. Donations welcome.

Biosffer Dyfi

BIOSFFER Dyfi Biosphere Tourism Association is extending a warm welcome to all to join the group on Tuesday, 9 February (2pm - 4pm) at Y Plas, to see how your tourism business can gain from the Biosphere’s international status as recognised by UNESCO.More information is available from [email protected] or call Romy Shovelton on 07767 370739.The afternoon will include the association’s AGM and tourism-related workshops.

Book club

THIS month’s gathering of the Tabernacle-based Machynlleth Book Club will be considering Notes from an Exhibition by Patrick Gale on Friday, 5 February (2pm-3.30pm). New members are welcome.

Pool

WITH a superb record of 25 wins from 27 frames, Scotty Davies of Llew Coch A still rode high in the Machynlleth and District Pool League’s Division 1 individual standings after the league’s ninth round of fixtures. Treading on Scotty’s heals were Mark Gaskell (White Lion A) 21/27, Gareth Davies (Tredegar Arms) 19/25, Lee Davies (Llew Coch A) 18/22, Robert Griffiths (Llew Coch A) 17/21 and Arwel Owen of Skinners A with 17 wins from 24 frames.Foresters’ Robert Lewis led the top six Division 2 players with 20 wins from 23 frames while, with 17 wins from 18 frames, Wynnstay Llanbrynmair’s Edward Jones took second place. Taking up the next four placings were Aled Jones (Foresters) 16/19, Mark C (Penrhos) 14/17, Aled Flash (Skinners B) 14/18 and Foresters’ Gwyn Pugh, 14/20.

Mozart evening

THE Tabernacle is hosting an evening of Mozart’s most-loved opera music, including Magic Flute, Don Giovanni and Marriage of Figaro, on Saturday, 6 February, at 7.30pm.Tickets for this ‘Mozartissimo’ evening are available from the Tabernacle.