Melksham Probus Club Christmas Dinner

A Probus Christmas dinner, which was held at the Kings Arms Hotel Melksham, on Friday 24th November, was enjoyed by 32 members and guests.

After an excellent meal, Graham Harding with his ukulele provided the entertainment with his rendering of George Formby and World War One songs, which were greatly enjoyed by all.

The after lunch speaker on Tuesday December 5th was Malissa Barnett who is curator of Chippenham Museum and Heritage Centre. She gave a most interesting talk on the famous people who have been associated with Chippenham. They include politicians, engineers and philanthropists and many more. Today, their names can be remembered by the presence of landmarks such as the Neeld Hall (Joseph Neeld), the railway arches (Brunel) and John Coles Park (John Coles, former Mayor).

Perhaps the most famous was Sir Robert Peel who was elected MP for Chippenham in 1812 and became Prime Minister for the first time in 1822. He is probably best known for introducing the police force as we know it today. The members were captivated by her knowledge of so many famous people and the vote of thanks by Ray Sissins was warmly applauded.

After the talk, the Probus committee decided it would like to donate an amount to charity and with the approval of the members, it was proposed and seconded that £100 should be donated to Julia’s House Children’s Hospice in Devizes.

Probus lunches are held on the first Tuesday of the month at the Kings Arms Hotel and the speaker for January will be Barry Cooper, who will be talking about the history of Lyneham.

New members are always welcome. Please contact the secretary Keith Gibbons on 01225 705641