The Williams Club of Farnham, for people with sight loss and the visually impaired in the Farnham area, enjoyed its annual Strawberry Tea at St Thomas-on-The Bourne Church on July 2.

The food was delicious and the members were delighted to be joined by the mayor of Farnham, Cllr George Murray, who was welcomed by the club chair, Jenny Colquhoun, and stayed throughout the two-hour tea, joining each of the tables to meet everyone and have a personal chat.

The club usually meets on the first Wednesday of the month from 2pm to 4pm, often at the Baptist Church in Farnham. The entertainment is always followed by sumptuous teas provided by assorted voluntary organisations.

Membership is free. For more details call Yvonne on 01252 713671 or Mike on 07470 525321, or visit www.williamsclubfarnham.co.uk

Group Captain Gilbert Insall holds a unique record - he is the only person to have won a Victoria Cross and escaped from a German prisoner of war camp during the First World War.

After a congenial lunch on October 17, his great-nephew Tony Insall will tell this story of exceptional achievements and near-unbelievable courage to members of Milford Probus Club, guests and visitors.

Tony has a distinguished career in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department of War Studies at King’s College, and is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He lives near Guildford.

Lunch and the talk will cost £32. To book - the Monday before the event - email Miranda O’Brien at [email protected] or call her on 01483 423398.

Milford Probus Club is for retired and semi-retired business and professional men and women who enjoy comradeship, informative talks and wider activities. The club’s activities include organised outings and enjoyable walks, ending in a fine pub.

Established in 1999, it has welcomed women members since 2016 and now has a female president. Prospective members are invited to join lunches as paying guests while considering membership. There is a friendly bar and plenty of parking.

For more information visit www.milfordprobus.com

At their latest meeting, botanical artist Sheryl Pape gave members a demonstration entitled Dancing Dahlias in Watercolour.

Sheryl graduated with the Society of Botanical Artists in 2015 and has exhibited her work at the Mall Galleries London, Oxmarket Contemporary Chichester and the RHS Dahlia Show and British Iris Society shows at RHS Wisley. In 2024 she exhibited at The Royal Society of Painters in Watercolour.

Sheryl showed her preparatory detailed pencil drawing she had already completed. This was then copied on to tracing paper with all the petals numbered. Sheryl used white Tracedown paper to transfer the drawing to Fabriano 300g smooth hot-pressed paper.

She worked from the outside in and left to right, emphasising the importance of allowing one layer of paint to dry before moving on to the next.

She used just four colours, Windsor & Newton’s Lemon Yellow, Permanent Rose and Orange, along with Schmincke’s Ultra Marine Violet, and Billy Showell synthetic fine pointed round brushes in sizes 00, 4, 6 and 8. Sheryl said it normally took her two days to complete a flower.

Sheryl will be running a workshop on September 27, when she will have time to go into more details on Dancing Dahlias.

The cost is £40 for members and £50 for non-members. It will take place at the Triangle Centre in Liss, with artists arriving at 9.30am to set up. Tuition will be from 10am to 4pm, with a break for a packed lunch.

The next demonstration will be on September 11, when local artist Caroline Strong will demonstrate Coloured Pencils and Watercolour.

All demonstrations are held in The Canada Room at the Millennium Centre in Ontario Way, Liphook, from 7.30pm to 9.30pm. They are free to members and £5 to non-members.

For more details visit https://www.liphookartsandcrafts.org.uk/ or email Carol at [email protected]

Alton Camera Club will kick off the spring term of its 2025-26 programme on January 7 when Shona Perkins will give a talk on intentional camera movement photography.

January 14 will be a projected digital image competition night, with the third round of the league - two pictures per entrant - and the third challenge, for which members will enter one picture on the theme of Weather. The judge will be Sue Brame.

On January 21 Jonathan Geneveux will give a talk on Waterscapes, and January 28 will be a studio evening during which the club will provide lights and models, and members will bring their cameras.

Abstract photography will be the subject of Pete Clarke’s talk on February 4. He will take members from conventional landscape art via the Impressionists to modern abstract artists and photographers.

Print competitions will be held on February 11, with round three of the league, and the third challenge, on the theme of Minimalism. Members can enter up to two pictures in each competition, and the judge will be Brian Burden.

Helen Hoffman will give a talk on natural light portraiture on February 18, and February 25 will see more projected digital image competitions, with round four of the league - two pictures each - and a single-picture fourth challenge on the theme of Water. Paul Herbert will be the judge.

Julian Elliott will give a talk about Mongolia on March 4, and on March 11 there will be an inter-club Match an Image competition involving Alton, Farnborough and Windlesham & Camberley camera clubs, judged by Suzie Kirkby.

Alton will be hosting the Southern Counties Photographic Federation Print League Division 2 on March 18, with judging by Kev Sandall.

The fourth round of the print league will be contested on March 25, along with the Kay Stickland Portrait Competition, with up to two images allowed in each competition. Chris Dixon will be the judge.

Alton Camera Club members will travel to Aldershot Farnham & Fleet Camera Club on April 1 for the annual triangular competition which also involves Basingstoke Camera Club.

After a week off for Easter, the brief summer term of meetings begins on April 15 with His v Hers, as the ladies put up their best projected digital images against those of the gentlemen.

Images of northern Scotland will be on show as Andrew Tobin gives a talk entitled Skye at Night on April 22.

Alton Rugby Club will be the venue for Alton Camera Club’s End of Season Review and Social on May 1, an opportunity to enjoy a meal and a drink, view images from the year and celebrate members’ achievements in 2025-26.

The season will be rounded off with the annual general meeting on May 6, featuring reports from the committee on the year, the election of committee members and proposals from members.

Meetings are held in Holybourne Village Hall, with doors opening at 7pm for a 7.30pm start. There is usually a break around 8.30pm for refreshments, and meetings are finished by 10pm. Guests are welcome at talks for a fee of £5, refundable against taking out membership in the same season. For more information visit https://altoncameraclub.org.uk/

The Long Sutton Tuesday Art Group is perfect for people who have been looking at their art materials and thinking that they really do need using.

It is a small group which meets each Tuesday afternoon from 2pm to around 4.30pm at Long Sutton Village Hall - opposite the church - for do-it-yourself art, with occasional tutorial demonstrations by local artists. Artists in any medium and of all standards are welcome, and the subscription fee is modest.

The group is friendly and fun, with good coffee, and it can be a useful addition for people taking regular art classes.

For more details call Peter on 01420 22190.

Alton Art Society is celebrating its centenary year by holding its 93rd annual exhibition at the Alton Assembly Rooms.

There will be a private view on October 10 before the exhibition opens to the public from October 11 to 19 between 10am and 5pm (3pm on the last day).

Each paid-up member of the society can submit any or all of the following - three original paintings, a fourth reserve painting to be hung if space permits, six pieces of three-dimensional work, six unframed original folio paintings and 30 greetings cards.

All work must be for sale, with minimum prices of £50 for hanging exhibits and £20 for folios. Greetings cards will be sold for £2.50 each.

All entries must meet the society’s presentation standards, and it reserves the right to refuse any entry. Any artwork not properly strung or labelled will be rejected.

The society will take all reasonable care of exhibits but cannot be held responsible for loss or damage. It strongly advises artists to have personal insurance cover for loss of or damage to exhibited works.

Entry is by completion and submission of the entry form, available at www.altonartsociety.org, and payment of fees by post, by September 19.