The Hothfield Village Fete opened at 12:00 noon on Saturday 6th August in John Cole's field and the Village Hall. Entrance was free.

Sadly the Fete was marred with bad weather this year. Fortunately we had the Village Hall to retreat to. The weather did affect the visitor numbers but those who stayed enjoyed a performance by The Hothfield Singers who raised £59 which they donated to The Dame Vera Lynne Charity, 'Children with Cerebral Palsy'. Rose Perkins and her lady's showed their line dancing skills. Prizes were given to the winners of the Hothfield Village Garden Competition. They were:-
 
Best Village Garden. 1st place. Mr Penfold. 2nd place. Mrs Kay Pender.
Best Rural Garden. 1st place. Mr George Sainsbury. 2nd place. Mr Charlies Oliver.
Best Vegetable Garden. 1st place. Mr Alf Jobber. 2nd place. Mr Lionel Evens.
Most Beautiful Container. 1st place. Mrs Betty Jones. 2nd place. Mr and Beany.

Rosie Harris correctly guessed the weight of the cake.   Ryley Fogerty, aged 10, was the winner of the 'Milk the cow' competition. 
 
The Grand Raffle was a great success. There were 30+ prizes including, 1st Prize, Hot Air Balloon Ride for 2 (winner: Kelly Marden). followed by, 2x Theatre Tickets, Ten Pin Bowling Tickets, Family Swim Tickets, Cinema Tickets, Theme Park Tickets, Coty Beauty Products, Shepherd Neame Brewery Tour and many others.

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(Above) The Hothfield History Society’s stall at the fête proved to be very popular and thank to you everyone who came to see us. The display of photos, maps, letters and local artefacts relating to life in the Nissen Huts on Hothfield Common attracted lots of interest, and many visitors shared their fascinating personal stories and memories. We are delighted to have sold several copies of the History Society’s publications and CDs, and many more orders were taken for the limited edition jute shopping bags exclusively branded for Hothfield. (An order for 100 has now been placed).

All surplus monies raised will go towards the History Society funds which are used to print publications, purchase local historic artefacts and to help towards the cost of putting on another Hothfield history exhibition for the village next year. If you would like a copy of our publications, or a bag that says "I'm an old bag from Hothfield" then please contact the History Society.

(Above, left) This cuddly Giant Panda proved a big hit at the fête, so thank you to all the children, mums and dads and grandparents for trying to guess his or her name.  The panda’s name was “Ponya”.  This is because the word 'panda' is thought to come from the Nepalese word 'ponya' which means bamboo eater.  Congratulations to Paula Chapman from Hothfield who correctly guessed the name.

A big thank you goes to June Penny for generously donating this gorgeous panda for the competition, and the money that Ponya helped to raise has gone towards the upkeep of your village hall.

Photographs courtesy of Hedley Grenfell-Banks and Sheila Flynn