The club are long standing supporters of the charity event that takes place at St Marys Church in Ottery. This year, it was new members Ray & Alison Hart (with help from a few others) who stepped up and decorated 'our tree' - as you can see, it looked fabulous and they should be very proud of their efforts.

After the festival has finished, it will make the long journey back to the bowling club (road closures are not expected!) where it will sit proudly on display so that other members can appreciate their work close up. 

It is a general assumption that when the summer season is over and bowling ceases as an activity, that the club automatically shuts down.

Not so, as during the winter, there is still the green to be maintained and the club-house to be cleaned, but also social events continue to run keeping the unity of the club intact. This winter it has been necessary for several fund raising events to be held as the management committee have realised that nearly half of the annual subscriptions received is spent on electricity.

Recognising that this state of affairs cannot continue, it was decided that there is a need to future-proof the club by installing solar panels. Led by club chairman, Carl Gilleard, a programme of social events has been arranged, ranging from whist drives to murder mystery evenings together with regular club meals (foodie Fridays). Within a very short time at least a quarter of the total required to purchase the solar panels has been raised.

Ottery St Mary Bowling Club prides itself on being inclusive and actively supports Devon Disability Bowls with every opportunity for the disabled to enjoy playing this game.

Club member, Kevin Vernon, who was awarded his England shirt through this charity, wanted to play his part in fundraising, so he decided, that he would swim 10,000 metres (six and a quarter miles in proper money).

He duly accomplished this feat with the cooperation and assistance of the staff at Sidmouth Swimming Pool, raising nearly £400.00 through sponsorship.

The club is very grateful to Kevin for his contribution. He specifically asked that the management and staff (especially the lifeguards!) of Sidmouth Swimming Pool be thanked for enabling him to complete this challenge.

Did you spot 'whodunnit' before all was revealed?

Special thanks for a great evening go to Andy Padmore who was the driving force behind the production, Carl Gilleard / Pete Parnell for their efforts in securing prizes for the silent auction, those who generously provided items for the auction, Anita and her team for delivering yet another fantastic meal that was enjoyed by the cast and crew alike.

​Thanks to Sharon, Emma, Carol, Steve and Tony for taking themselves out of their comfort zone and thrusting themselves into the spotlight - true thespians and luvvies.

Most importantly, to those who attended the event and bid for the auction items, your generosity raised a considerable sum of money on the evening and that will go straight into the REF fund 

A fabulous evening was had by one and all at the Jack in the Green where the food, wine and company all excelled!

Sadly, our Chairman, Carl Gilleard, wasn't able to attend the event but in his absence, Club Captain, Gail and President, Sharon did a magnificent job in 'running the show' in his absence.

Special thanks to Carol for helping to organise the event, Grant & Jo for organising the competitions and lastly, to Gerard for stepping in at the last minute to take the photos.

The pictures shown above are the survivors as there were a number of discards for reasons including, eyes closed | squinting | gurning - I think that Gerard did a fabulous job and he must be a very strong contender to continue in the role for 2026 ;-)

After grafting with his team after the final drive last month and racking up an enormous amount of steps in the process of scarifying then feeding the green, Dave put his feet up for a well earned rest!

Didn't last long.... his mind cast back to the problems with surface water that we experienced the season before last when the weather wasn't so kind to us. 

Along with John Pethick, Dave tried to work out why the green wasn't draining as it should - this led them to look back at the plans from when the green was first constructed back in the late 80's. They soon realised that the actual build of the green didn't quite match the design which has contributed to the problems that we have been facing.

They deliberated long and hard, trying to work out an optimal solution - 'make big holes' was the conclusion so last weekend, they did just that!

With help from the greens team, Saturday was spent making lots of big holes (then filling them with pebbles) as the forecast for Sunday was shocking and Dave didn't want to get his hair wet!

The result will hopefully be a surface that will be more resilient in the coming seasons, especially following heavy rainfall
 

As Dave Brown and his team put the green to bed for another season, the final drive, wonderfully conceived and managed by Gail & Gerard, was a fitting way for everyone to say goodbye to it and hope that it winters well! (i'll get my coat!).

Casual attire was the order of the day (for most of us at least!) and despite only 2 shots separating the first 3 places, the team of Jo Hawes, Val Cozens, Dave Brown and Kevin McCarthy were crowned champions and quite rightly received adulation from the assembled masses.

After a nice speech by Carl, reflecting on how well the season had gone, the raffle (with prizes so generously provided by Kevin and Fenella Vernon) was drawn and then 40+ members and guests tucked into a delicious roast dinner prepared by Sharon, Gail & Jenny.

Pictured above are the winning team, lucky raffle winners (Anita & Grant) and the winner of the Spider comp (Ron)

By the time that this article is read, there is every likelihood that the leaves will have been blown off the trees, and the bowling green will have been closed for the winter. Having said that, the greenkeeper will now be starting the winter preparations for next season, and having seen how good the green is at the end of a heavy season of play, it is hardly surprising that winter work starts as soon as the last bowl has been bowled!

Reviewing the season, it would be fair to say that it has been a good season with some notable successes and also some least memorable events. The ladies team excelled themselves in The Top Club competition by winning through to the County Final, where they met a very strong team from Torquay, who had several
international players in their ranks, and who have won this particular competition on previous occasions. Needless to say, the Ottery ladies did not win, but they put up a very good fight, with one or two matches being a close run affair. Similarly, the men’s team won through the early rounds of their competition, but were defeated at quarter final stage.

The East of Exe League is a Monday night league for mixed teams, and there is every likelihood that Ottery will win the league this year. In addition both the men’s and the ladies section play in Over 60’s midweek leagues, and all six teams entered are riding high in their respective leagues.

The majority of the fixture list is made up with matches against other local teams, where friendly rivalry built up over the years is always a key element of these occasions. Touring teams also enjoy a visit to the club as the facilities are always of the highest quality, and the welcome is always warm and genuine. This year an inter county match will be played at Ottery, which is an indication of the high esteem in
which the club is held at a higher level.

The game of Bowls does have the reputation of being a sport for the older generation and we still have some 90 year olds playing and enjoying an active afternoon in the sunshine. Furthermore, this year, a Junior section has been started by the club captain assisted by at least four fully qualified coaches. Some of the youngsters have already represented the club in friendly matches. So the season is now drawing to a close, but there are still winter social activities to be enjoyed, very often involving a meal!

Perhaps, people reading this article are considering taking up a new sport or hobby, and I must ask if you can find another open air sport that combines physical activity, laughter, friendliness, company, competitiveness, and above all fun. It is always very interesting to hear people who joined the club in April say ”I never realised how much I would enjoy playing bowls!”

Next season will start on Sunday 19th April 2026, and further details will be circulated prior to that date. I hope to see you then.

Clive Russell - Press Officer

From Our President

After Shirley Fewtrell suggested the idea to me, of having the Plum Jam Band at the club for an afternoon of entertainment, the committee having given their go ahead, I contacted the band and after much 'to-ing  and  fro-ing' it was all arranged.   

​Next, we had to ensure there would be a gazebo and electricity laid on for the band. Well, who knew that extension leads were the must have accessory to have in your cupboard at home, as four turned up plus more offered! Thank you, one and all.

Gazebos, the 'pop up' variety, supplied by Peter and the 'needs four to erect', type that Gail and Chris brought along. The 'pop up' just popped up, but was decided a bit small for the job, so it was repurposed as somewhere the band could have their food later (aka The Green Room). Up went the next gazebo with much instruction reading by the men, hanging on to this and that by all, bashing the stakes with a make- ship hammer, (a large stone, yes we managed to bend some stakes), and up it went!  We were all delighted with our efforts, just needed the band to show up. Little did we realise after walking away that the' Pop Up' decided to have a flying  trip across the carpark!  

The band proved to be a lovely bunch of blokes that obviously love their music. They entertained the lucky picnickers, in perfect weather and though hard to negotiate around the holes in the grass, there was even some dancing.

Thank you to all that came along and all that helped in some way.   It was great to see members chatting and relaxing in the grounds of our lovely club. We are so lucky and I am so proud of what we accomplish at the club.  Sharon.

​Thanks to Emma and Jo for the photos