Barry Coombs - Canadian Artist runs Painting Course at Farncombe

COTSWOLDS Sketching and Painting in Watercolor at Farncombe

August 8 - 18, 2013

***EARLY BIRD SPECIAL Sign up by March 1, 2013 and save $CDN 100 from the workshop fee.

Join us for a wonderful painting holiday in the lovely Cotswolds. Our workshop will be hosted by Farncombe Estate. The 320-acre estate features nature trails, woodlands, lakes and spectacular panoramic views. It is within walking distance (Across fields) of the villages of Broadway and close to Chipping Camden. Our focus will be on plein air painting but we will also have exclusive use of a well-equipped studio for the duration of our stay. Five painting day trips to charming and historic local villages are planned, as well.

Our workshop will focus on watercolour painting, pen and ink sketching and pen drawing with wash. This workshop is for participants with some experience in their chosen medium. Participants working in other media are very welcome as are non-painting partners and friends. Demonstrations, individual attention and constructive critiques will be essential elements of this creative learning experience. Click here to see What To Expect from a Barry Coombs painting holiday.

A graduate of the Ontario College of Art, Barry Coombs has led workshops in Ontario, Quebec and maritime Canada for over twenty years as well as many international expeditions to Italy, France, Greece and Mexico. He is noted for his positive and constructive attitude, excellent organizational skills and ability to work with students of all levels of skill and experience. Barry exhibits his work in Canada and internationally and represented Canada at the G20 World Artist Festival in Seoul, South Korea in November of 2010.

Our Farncombe Estate package includes:
• Four star accommodation with ensuite bathrooms and wifi
• Full English breakfast, lunch and dinner
• Five painting day trips with packed lunch
• Onsite refreshments
• Exclusive use of studio
• All taxes

Our Farncombe Estate package does not include:
• Workshop fee
• Flights and transfers (contact Barry Coombs for assistance)
• Gratuities (a collection will be made for a group gratuity)
• Travel, medical and cancellation insurance

Total cost of our Farncombe Estate package is:
• Single occupancy bedroom for ten nights - £1225
• Double occupancy bedroom for ten nights - £1125 (Per Person)

The workshop fee is:
• Painter - $CDN 750 until March 1, 2013 and $CDN 850 after March 1, 2013
• Non-painter - $CDN 350 until March 1, 2013 and $CDN 450 after March 1, 2013

How to register:
1) Contact Barry Coombs using the form below or at (416) 652-7936 or info@barrycoombs.ca to reserve your spot on a first-come, first-serve basis and to receive a registration number and the name, email address and telephone number of our Farncombe Estate contact person. Farncombe Estate will not enroll you without a registration number.

2) A non-refundable deposit of $CDN 100 is due immediately; payable to Barry Coombs.

3) Contact Farncombe Estate to book your accommodation. A non-refundable 10% deposit will be required to confirm the booking. This can be paid by card over the phone or by bank transfer.

4) Participants will receive an email from Farncombe Estate on or around the 8^th of June. It will summarize the accommodation and any additional services (ie: transfers) that have been booked. It will also remind participants that the balance payment for their Farncombe Estate package is due no later than one month before the start of the course; the 8^th of July. This may be paid by card over the phone or by bank transfer. After the 8^th of July the cost of your package with Farncombe is non-refundable.

5) The balance of the workshop fee is payable to Barry Coombs no later than the 8^th of July. After July 8, the workshop fee is non-refundable. In the event of insufficient enrollment, a full refund of the workshop fee will be made.

Photography Courses in the Cotswolds

The perfect setting?!

Farncombe Courses is very lucky to be situated on the beautiful 320-acre Farncombe Estate, in the North Cotswolds. It is a perfect setting for photography courses, whether you are a beginner wanting to learn how to switch on a camera and snap or someone who is slightly more advanced.

At Farncombe we offer photography courses that will teach you how to take better photos, how to shoot portraits, how to tell a story through photography and even how to archive and protect valuable images.

2013 holds a wide range of day and weekend photography courses. So why not take a look and we're sure you will be a pro in time for those Summer holiday snaps!

For full details visit our website www.farncombecourses.co.uk.

What do you buy someone who has everything?

A Farncombe Course of course!

If you are struggling for ideas this Christmas, a farncombe course offers the perfect gift solution! With a wide range of weekend and day courses every weekend of the year there is a course to suit everyone.

If your loved one or friend would like to try something new such as bee-keeping, painting, singing or has a keen interest in history then why not book them on a farncombe course? All of our courses are inclusive of meals and our 4 star guest accomodation is modern and comfortable.

If you can't decide on a course then our farncombe gift vouchers give the recipient the power to choose. They are valid for one year from the dat of purchase and start at £5.

For more information on any of our courses or how to buy a gift voucher please visit our website or call us on 0333 456 8580.

An experience is for life: not just for Christmas!

The strictly season is here & so is Dancing at Farncombe!

Farncombe is now offering an exciting range of dance courses that would give Strictly a run for its money!

At Farncombe you will be able to Learn the Argentine Tango, Come Ballroom Dancing or Try a Taste of Latin all in the stunning Ballroom of the Grade I Listed building Foxhill Manor. We have courses to suit all levels of dance ability and a course designed especially for beginners.

If you love to move and want to wiggle your hips in a beautiful cotswolds setting the Salsarah's A Taste of Latin Course is perfect for you.

Tango beginner or seasoned lover of Latin dancing? Then the Argentine Tango course, with tutors Leo and Tracey (pictured above), is the weekend to get your toes tripping across the ballroom floor.

Farncombe offers 320-acres of private parkland & 89 ensuite bedrooms in the North Cotswolds. All you have to do is get your dancing shoes on and enjoy!

For more information on the dance courses or any other weekend leisure course please visit our website or call us on 0333 456 8580

Here is what you and Dame Kelly Holmes say about us....

“This may be the most beautiful view in the whole country.” Colin Dexter, author of Inspector Morse novels and crossword enthusiast, Sept 2011

“This business is a real success story. It is an organisation that has had to branch out and invent new lines of business, becoming so successful that it needs more space… It’s superb to see high-quality facilities springing up anywhere, but particularly in such a beautiful part of the country. What an amazing facility.” John Penrose MP, Tourism & Heritage Minister, February 2012

“I haven’t been here before but wow, it’s a great place.” Dame Kelly Holmes, double Gold Medal winning athlete, December 2011

YOU SAY:
“Very much appreciate the ‘green tourism’ approach.” Anne Mackintosh, March 2012

“The teaching room was v. pleasant – spacious and comfortable. The provision of tea and coffee nearby was a plus! The ability to leave bulky instruments in a locked room overnight was a blessing.” Helen Brown (Intro to String Ensemble Playing) March 2012

“Accommodation and food excellent, so was the tuition.” Pat Mullard, March 2012

“Food excellent… thoroughly enjoyed my stay – the location is wonderful and staff very helpful. Loved the water features around the grounds.” Heather Hickman, March 2012

“The rooms were clean, the staff always helpful. The shower was lovely and the food was great!” Sara McKeon, Feb 2012

“Thank you for bright smiles and cheerful helpfulness – this is most important!” Barry Sherratt, Feb 2012

“Lovely venue. Good value for money. Learnt a lot.” Maggie Rigg, Feb 2012

“Wonderful venue. Courteous and very helpful staff. Overall an excellent weekend. A HUGE thank you to everyone involved! PS. I’m very much looking forward to my next course!” (Anon) Feb 2012

“Well-planned course. Lovely environment. Staff helpful. Food excellent. Room very good. Teaching area excellent.” Wendy Curtis, January 2012

“The facilities at Farncombe are very good. The building we used was beautiful and lent to the overall experience. I had a great weekend and will come again.” Pauline McDonald, January 2012

“I have realised, with some embarrassment, that I never wrote to thank you for everything you and your colleagues did to make my Chinese friend’s first visit to Farncombe such a wonderful experience when he and I attended the recent Tannhäuser weekend. Shang, who is from Beijing, had not been in England very long, and was deeply touched by all the help he was given and how welcome he was made to feel. He was given a lift to and from his bed and breakfast accommodation, and was even told on the Saturday evening that it was up to him to decide when he wanted the car to take him back. He was thrilled by the whole thing and has already booked a place on the Rheingold course in March… We both remain very grateful that you looked after him so well.” Clare Canton, Dec 2011

“Farncombe is a beautiful place & the standard of care, accommodation and food was excellent.” Martin Gisby, Nov 2011

Farncombe prepares to launch 2013 leisure course programme

The 2013 Farncombe course brochure is currently beign designed and will be landing on our customers' mats early September. The programme has been carefully planned to include a wide mix of weekend and day leisure courses.

Adult Edcuation has always been the focus of Farncombe and the team have planned a year full of courses in subjects such as; bee-keeping, history, crafts and texiltes, painting, writing, photography, singing and much more. We like to think that at Farncombe there is something for everyone.

We will be posting and e-mailing our brocuhre to every one of our customers. If you don't currently receive information from Farncombe and would like to, please fill in the brochure request form on our website. www.farncombecourses.co.uk

A venue for group events and leisure courses in the Cotswolds, Farncombe Estate

Some venues offer group packages that suits the venue, in unloved meeting rooms with fixed meal times. There’s nothing fixed about Farncombe. Our 320-acre estate is perfect for photographers and ramblers, artists and team-builders – the only limit is your imagination.

Our parkland setting, combined with a “village” of smaller buildings, enables us to create privacy for every kind of activity. Whether you want to make lace or practise yoga, sing or pray, we can ensure calm and tranquility, far away from main roads and urban centres.

We are also a favourite retreat for charities and associations, who choose us for their annual conferences and group meetings. Our Heart of England location is easy to reach from the motorway network by delegates from all over the UK.

As well as welcoming groups of all-kind to our venue, we offer our own Course Programme of weekend leisure courses and day courses in subjects that include; History, Art, Painting, Crafts and Textiles, Music Appreciation and much more.

Come Dancing - Dancing Course for Beginners

Lots of us would love to be able to waltz, foxtrot or tango, and this new dance course is aimed both at ballroom beginners and those who have forgotten how. Philip Wylie from “Holiday and Dance” has taught ballroom for almost 30 years and will make your dancing experience sparkle from the start. Waltz your partner around the dance floor, slowly get into the Quickstep or try out a simple Tango. Latin lovers will challenge themselves with the Cha Cha, the Samba, Rumba and Jive.

You learn with others at the same level and won’t miss a step with this fun introduction to dance.

For more information of to book please call 0333 456 8580 or view our dance courses here.

Summer Offer from Farncombe

Are you a budding photographer or a singing sensation in your own bathroom?  

Do you want to “come dancing” or “go painting”?

At Farncombe Estate, we have wonderful weekend courses for every taste.  History to music-making

If you’re thinking of a mini-break or a Stay-cation this year, why not spend it on our beautiful Cotswold Estate with long views and fantastic food?  

We’ll even pick you up from the London train!

This summer, we’re celebrating the prospect of the Olympics with a special offer of £20.12 off every course.*

To qualify, select a course on our website www.farncombeestate.co.uk and call us on 0333 456 8580, quoting OLY2012.

*This special offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.  It is not available on the website – please call to secure your place. Cannot be used towards a day course. Booking needs to be made by 27th August to qualify for this discount.

Win Big in the Gardeners World Prize Draw

You could be in with the chance to win big in the Gardeners World prize draw with a selection of prizes on offer.  Please take a look below at the prizes on offer and then click on the link at the bottom to enter.
Winners will be notified by the 30th August 2012 by telephone or email.

1st Prize - Farncombe Estate Course

Farncombe Estate is offering a fantastic prize where you can enjoy a short course like the 'Glorious Cotswold Gardens' course or one of the many other courses available at the short course study centre in the Cotswolds.  The prize is valid for 12 months so you can take your pick out of a variety of courses held throughout the year.

Please click here to find out more about Farncombe Estate

To enter the competition please follow this link

Recorder Ensemble: Recorder Mix

Start: 14th September 2012 at 6:00pm
End: 16th September 2012 at 2:00pm
Tutor: Andrew Collis

This Recorder Ensemble Course mixes composers, styles and techniques for competent players of recorders (Descant through Bass) who have experience of ensemble and one-to-a-part playing. The music will be original recorder works and arrangements of orchestral/vocal pieces. It will cover the variety of approaches to music found in the Recorder Ensemble repertoire. Players of Great and Contra Bass recorder are also welcome. Good sight-reading ability is required and also the confidence to change instruments. Performance practice, technique and aural skills will be covered, along with recorder care and maintenance.

For more information on this or any of our Making Music Courses please follow this link.

To book please call us on 0333 456 8580

Summer Discount at Farncombe

Our Early Bird offer may have flown but we are pleased to offer you a 10% discount on selected summer courses at Farncombe!   Please quote FC0612 to claim this special discount. Bookings need to be made by phone - 0333 456 8580.

The following courses qualify:

Drawing for theTerrified (2 nights) 13 – 15 July

Richard Box will guide you on your first steps in creative drawing

Botanical BasicsPainting (2 nights) 13 – 15 July

Learn to use gouache or watercolour to illustrate botanical subjects, with artist Simon Williams

Digital PhotographyWeekend – Learn to use your Compact Digital Camera (2 nights) 20-22 July

Ban the auto button and take better pictures with the help of photographer Nick Meers

Blocks Galore forQuilts and More (4 nights) 22 – 26 July

Textile tutor Jennie Rayment will teach you the delights of textured twiddling!

The High Renaissancein Italy (3 nights) 5 – 8 August

Discover the important artists and patrons of 16^th Century Italy, with art historian Alice Foster

Novel Outline andBeyond (3 nights) 12 – 15 August

Pick up professional tips on developing a story and creating believable characters – with author Sue Johnson

New dates and Tutor for Wagner Courses

Julian Williamson will now be running the Wagner's Ring: “Die Walküre” and Wagner's Ring: "Siegfried" courses at Farncombe Estate. Please note the new dates:

Wagner's Ring: "Die Walküre”
Start: 27th July 2012 at 6:00pm
End: 29th July 2012 at 2:00pm

The course will elucidate the dramatic and musical structure of “Die Walküre”. There will be opportunity for detailed study, scene by scene, of this full-length music-drama which is in three acts. It will be illustrated at the piano and on CD. The course will be especially concerned with the relationship of text and music, including the leitmotive (‘leading motive’) principle.

Wagner's Ring: “Siegfried”
Start: 2nd November 2012 at 6:00pm
End: 4th November 2012 at 2:00pm

‘The Ring Cycle’ introduces us to the child of nature, the ‘free hero’ Siegfried, his boyhood adventures and his progress towards manhood. The work develops the main dramatic idea, which now includes human beings, rather than gods, giants and dwarves. In the last act we are re-introduced to a new, mortal, and re-awakened Brunhilde in one of the most spacious, heroic, and lyrical scenes in the Cycle. We illustrate the musical and dramatic structures at the piano and from CD. These courses are ideal preparation for the performances we expect to see on the programme of the Longborough Festival Opera 2012-2013 season.
Please bring a vocal score and/or libretto if you can.

To book a place on these courses plase call us on 0333 456 8580 or visit the Farncombe Estate website

Quilting Weekend - Where is the North Star?

This weekend course teaches you how to make a quilt featuring the same design entirely with straight seams. It is foundation pieced, a technique using paper backing to ensure accurate shapes, with pieces larger than would normally be found on a quilt like this, yet this course is still suitable for all skill levels. Novices can start slowly and work their way up, also there are challenges for more experienced patchworkers as well. Materials list will be supplied upon request.

For full details on quilting courses at Farncombe Estate click here or call us formore details on 0333 456 8580

Summer Schools and Residential Courses in the Cotswolds

This Summer Farncombe Estate in the Cotswolds is hosting a wide range of Summer Schools on it's 320-acre Estate. Course are both residential and one day, topics range from Quilting, Crafts and Textiles, Photography, Watercolour Painting, Art Appreciation, Literature and Writing and Garden Breaks. For more information on our Summer Schools please visit our website or call us on 0333 456 8580. You can also fill in the form on our website to request a full printed brochure.

‘All the Queen’s Women’: the Female World of Elizabeth I

During the reign of Elizabeth I, it was her female circle that exerted the most profound influence on her life. This in-depth course explores the leading women at the Queen’s court as well as investigating more outstanding female contemporaries such as Mary Sidney, Bess Throckmorton, Lady Penelope Devereux and the legendary Bess of Hardwick. The course also includes a field trip to Sudeley Castle with transport provided, but the admission charge is not included.

Join John Sutton in the 2 day course at Farncombe Estate, Broadway, Worcestershire. To book your place call us on 0333 456 8580.

It's magic! Take a closer look ...

Many of the techniques of the effective close-up magician do not need extraordinary manual dexterity.

Presentation, timing, and misdirection are more important. With a few hours of practice, normal dexterity, and some everyday objects, you can begin to amaze and entertain.

Join Neal Weigel for a weekend course at Farncombe 15-17 July "Close Up Magic for Beginners". No expensive equipment needed. A basic kit of everyday objects is included in the course fee. Some other equipment will be offered for sale at modest prices, but is strictly optional.

For more details email enquiries@farncombeestate.co.uk or book online via www.farncombeestate.co.uk

Farncombe Estate join the Cotswolds Green Scheme!

Farncombe Estate Centre has joined the Cotswolds Green Scheme, proving a sound commitment to sustainability in business practices.

Cotswolds Green Scheme businesses make a commitment to:

• Improving energy efficiency
• Recycling & reducing waste
• Encouraging car free tourism
• Promoting local produce
• Supporting nature and conservation
• Promoting the local area and the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Cotswold & Forest of Dean Tourism, West Oxfordshire Tourism and the Cotswolds Conservation Board have introduced the ‘Cotswolds Green Scheme’ as a local sustainable tourism initiative. In this scheme, tourism businesses are invited to complete a questionnaire to measures a commitment to environmental issues such as car-free tourism, use of local produce, nature and conservation, recycling and resource use, and energy efficiency.

For more information about the Cotswolds Green Scheme visit www.cotswolds.com/site/membership/cotswolds-green-scheme

Further details about Farncombe Estate is available from www.FarncombeEstate.co.uk

A Thirteenth Century Miscellany at Farncombe Estate

A Day School Saturday 8th October 2011 at Cotswold Conference Centre

Lords and Chronicles: A Thirteenth Century Miscellany

Please note that all bookings and enquiries should be made with the Simon de Montfort Society directly.

Speakers:

• Professor Christopher Dyer
• Professor Peter Coss
• Professor David Carpenter
• Dr John Hunt

A panel of medieval historians review aspects of the politics, life and society in thirteenth century England, looking also to the centuries before and after. Drawing on current, published and unpublished research, this day offers the opportunity to join in a consideration and discussion of some wide-ranging themes, including, the failure of some medieval towns; approaches that barons might adopt in their exercise of lordship; gentry households and life within them, looking particularly at entertainment; and the discovery of a previously unrecognised Worcestershire chronicle of this period.

Download a booking form here

FEES: Inclusive of morning coffee and afternoon tea.

MEMBERS of the Simon de Montfort Society pay £18.50;
NON-MEMBERS pay £19.50.

Payable in advance, to the Society's Hon Treasurer, Mr D Snowden, 2 St Matthews Close, Four Pools, Evesham, WR11 6ES ( 01386 421747 ).

ALL CHEQUES should be made payable to the 'Simon de Montfort Society'. Please Note: Refreshments and lunch is provided.

CLOSING DATE FOR ENROLMENTS - Monday, September 12th.

Registered Charity No. 1092319

A life in learning : William Reddaway retires

William Reddaway, Head of Lifelong Learning at the Farncombe Estate Centre near Broadway, is retiring after 28 years working for companies on the estate – and a colourful career abroad.

William, 63, is one of the founders of the Farncombe Estate programme, which features an astonishing range of leisure and special interest courses every weekend. “I have a belief that ongoing learning throughout your life is a good thing,” he says. “My father was a university historian. As a child, I remember my mother leaving me with a babysitter so she could drive him to his ‘extra-mural’ lectures. It’s something I grew up with.”

Skeletons in the cupboard
Like his father, William began as a historian at London University. Here he met his future wife Christine on the very first day. During a stint in Indonesia, William proposed to Christine by letter. The couple moved to the southern Sudan and were then posted to India. William worked for 13 years with UNICEF on many government programmes to help women and children. He promoted education and nutrition, helped organise flood relief and also, for some reason, shipped a few human skeletons… “I may be the only person for miles who has shipped skeletons around the world,” he reminisces. “In those days, most ‘skeleton stringers’ were based in Calcutta. As I was responsible for procurement and export, I found myself shipping out 100 skeletons to the UNICEF warehouse in Copenhagen.”

New role
The decision to return to the UK was prompted by the birth of daughter Chloë in 1982 in New Delhi. “We didn’t want to live forever outside the UK and we didn’t want our baby to grow up without the involvement of her family,” says William. The family returned to England to take an M.Sc in Social Planning at the London School of Economics. William’s second career began in October 1983, with a role in commercial training for the international security company Group 4, who owned Farncombe Estate. He remembers the 370-acre estate on Fish Hill, overlooking the Vale of Evesham, long before it had been developed as the Cotswold Conference Centre: “Many of the buildings we know today did not exist. Where we now have our modern reception and dining room was then a tin shed.”
Heart and soul
Group 4’s training business grew rapidly through the 1980s and 90s. After a range of roles in training, consultancy and a PFI (private financing) schools project, William was asked to research the potential for a Lifelong Learning Centre at the Farncombe Estate. “Jørgen Philip-Sørensen, The Boss [Group 4’s founder, who died in 2010], loved the idea of lifelong learning,” says William. “He particularly wanted people to come and enjoy the beauty of Farncombe Estate.” In 2003, the new centre launched with a mission to educate. Thousands of people have since travelled to Farncombe for one of the widest education and leisure programmes around. While other adult learning centres are closing their doors, Farncombe still offers specialist weekend courses on singing and French, perfume making and art history, conveyancing, painting and crafts. Nick Akerman, Head of Sales at Cotswold Conference Centre and Farncombe Estate, says William will be truly missed. “William has been the heart and soul of the Farncombe Estate Centre since its inception,” he says. “The programme is very much the result of his vision and his relationship with our excellent tutors.”

Raising funds
William retires at the end of June, but he’s not planning to relax. His ambitious scheme is to ride a horse, solo, to the four corners of England. Starting in May 2013, he will visit Bowness-on-Solway, Berwick-upon-Tweed, North Foreland in Kent and Land’s End. Along the way, he will call in to 30 English Cathedrals, including St Paul’s, gathering publicity to raise a massive £250,000 for two charities: Wormwood Scrubs Pony Centre - riding for the disabled - and the Family Holiday Association. “Cathedrals are almost the only buildings in a city that haven’t moved for centuries,” says William. “Castles fall down and town halls get moved – but cathedrals stay put. And I love that connection with history.”