WE'LL MEET AGAIN: Diane will be returning to Stonyhill in October.

Diane, originally from the north-east of England, relocated to Essex with her family and travels around the home counties showering her audiences with her northern warmth and charm.

During her professional career, she has appeared on TV and radio and shared the bill with well-known artists such as Lee Evans, Robson and Jerome, and Ricky Valance. Today, she specialises in weddings, corporate entertainment and social events, gaining most of her business from repeat bookings and referrals.

Her programme at Stonyhill in October will span five decades with favourite songs from the Forties through to the Eighties.

Tickets will go on sale around six weeks in advance when details of catering arrangements will also be confirmed. Proceeds from the fundraising social event will be used to improve facilities at Stonyhill Bowls Club.

Closing date for summer entries will be March 31 and the deadline for winter teams will be April 30.

BOOK BARGAINS: Some of the titles on offer in the Stonyhill book sale.

Boxes of paperbacks and hardbacks are being sold off to make way for new titles at the club’s lending library which is stocked with donated books.

Bargain-hunters can pick up paperbacks for 10p each and hardbacks are priced at just £1.50.

Book sale items can be found on tables adjacent to Rink 5 … first come, first served.

Six rinks – three at home and three away – were in play and Stonyhill players ended the day with 125 shots to Walton’s 123, giving them an eight points to five advantage.

Stonyhill skips were Brian Gay, Geoff Byatt, Russell Watts, John Smith, Seaton Corby and Adam Smith.

DINNER TIME: Stonyhill bowlers and guests take their places for the after-match dinner.

Something distinctly fishy has been going on during a friendly fixture at Stonyhill Bowls Club on Sunday February 19, 2012 when visiting players from the Piscatorial Bowling Society held their traditional raffle of kippers to raise funds for good causes.

TOP RINK: Stonyhill captain Byron Davies (right) congratulates John Farmer, Val Wills, Sandie Westlake and David Pigram.

Society members don’t have a club of their own. Instead, they play at the invitation of other clubs … and there is no shortage of offers.

The society dates back to 1947 when porters from Billingsgate Fish Market challenged workers from Smithfield Meat Market to a variety of sports. After the games, they held a raffle with prizes of kippers and meat.

The raffle proceeds were spent in the pub until one particular year when celebrations got out of hand and the market workers ended up with a bill to cover the damage. After that, it was decided that the proceeds would be given to charity.

The society’s visit to Stonyhill raised another £142 towards their annual target of £7,000 for charities across the south-east region.

All seven rinks were in play for the friendly which was won by Stonyhill with an overall score of 151 – 102.

At the after-match dinner, home captain-for-the-day Byron Davies presented pens to his top rink: Sandie Westlake, David Pigram, Val Wills and John Farmer (skip).

As a forfeit, Piscatorial players on the team which lost by the greatest number of points performed the traditional task of handing out 20 large bags of kippers to the raffle winners!

HOME TEAMS: Three of the Stonyhill teams which took part in the friendly match against Piscatorial.

Byron Davies will be home team captain for the game which is due to begin at 2.30pm. All seven rinks will be in play and the dress code will be whites.

The Stonyhill teams are:

Twelve members of Ilford Magical Society presented the evening’s entertainment on Saturday February 11 for a sell-out audience of more than 100 Stonyhill members and their guests.

The evening included some mind-blowing close-up magic presented at tables by individual magicians, with each table of around 10 guests visited by four performers in the first half of the programme.

During the interval, a prize raffle was drawn before a supper of fish and chips or chicken and chips was served to guests.

In the second half of the show, the magicians presented a cabaret of three amazing stage acts including mind-reading and classic magic.

They give their time freely to make regular appearances at events for charities and non-profit organisations like Stonyhill Bowls Club which can raise much-needed funds by selling tickets and organising raffles and other activities.

If you’ve been impressed by the magic show at Stonyhill and feel tempted to become a magician yourself, Ilford Magical Society welcomes new members. Visit the Ilford Magical Society website for more details.

The tables are in PDF format and can be viewed or downloaded by clicking on the image below.

HOT SHOTS: John Knight, Pam Wakelin, Doodie Croll and Derek Croll.

Skip Derek Croll, his wife Doodie, Pam Wakelin and John Knight notched up eight points during their Thursday night league game on February 9.

They now qualify for admission to the prestigious Hot Shots Club run by Bowls International magazine and each can look forward to receiving a certificate and Hot Shot badge.

After their Hot Shot performance in the early stages, the team went on to a 20-9 overall victory on Rink 4.

Nomination forms for the election of officers are displayed on the notice board inside the club.