Thornton Community centre AGM
Thornton, transitions from spring to summer with plenty of excitement this year.
Thornton, transitions from spring to summer with plenty of excitement this year. Several events are scheduled at the Community Centre beginning at the end of May and continuing through June, offering something for everyone to enjoy.
On Friday 29th May the Community centre will host 2 performances by Sarah’s Paper theatre, of the Golden Goose , a light hearted adventure with a happy ending, suitable for all ages. Entry for adults £5 and £2 for children.
A brief respite before the Markfield and Thornton theatre group presents a stage adaptation of the Vicar of Dibley, by Ian Gower and Paul Carpenter based on the original tv series written by Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew. Produced by Tiger Aspect Productions. A beloved British comedy; the plot centres around Geraldine Granger, a lively and unconventional vicar who surprises the sleepy village of Dibley by taking over—despite the parish council expecting a male vicar. Much of the comedy stems from Geraldine’s encounters with the eccentric locals and the humorous clash between her progressive views and their traditional ways. The play runs from Wednesday 10th to the 13th June. Tickets £8.
Sunday the 21st June sees the return of the beloved biennial Open Gardens. A number of gardens will be open between 1pm and 6pm. There will be refreshments, stalls and other attractions around the village, a plant sale, and cream teas available at the Community Centre. Admission is by programme, available at various locations around the village. Programme £5. Organised by Friends of St Peter as a fund raiser for the maintenance of the church.
On the following Friday evening, the 26th June, Govannen, one of the UK’s leading folk groups, return to Thornton for another magical evening of Celtic music at its best. There will be a licensed bar provided by McSmith Events. Tickets £20. Raising funds for a new heating system at Thornton Community centre.
The month concludes with the first of what is hoped to become an annual two day artisan festival at the Community centre. The centre is open from midday to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday 27th and the 28th June, The main hall will feature artwork and photography, whilst the sports hall features crafters and makers, and childrens’ crafts. Outdoors there will be food stalls, a bar, and live music. Donations welcome. Raising funds for a new heating system at the Centre.
More information on www.thorntonvillage.org
St Peter’s Church, Thornton.
Can you help? Do you have a few spare hours in the week or the month? Then please read on.
Our ancient and beautiful church has an important place in the life of the village.
Maybe you enjoy a walk that takes you through the church grounds seeing the snowdrops,
beautiful trees including the copper beech, spotting the squirrels or hearing the
woodpecker.
Maybe it’s visiting the church for some solitude or quiet prayer.
Enjoying one of the church services.
Or maybe it’s the amazing heritage and history of the building.
Or even just the reassurance that it gives.
There is no doubt that this church is valued by many villagers.
This is our problem: the team ‘looking after’ the church is small in number, aging and needs help.
And it does need a lot of ‘looking after’.
From cleaning, gardening, odd jobs to fund raising for repairs.
We would be so very grateful if you could help in one of the many ways.
And you do not need to be a church attendee, just someone who is interested and wants to help this church building and its grounds survive for future generations to enjoy.
This is where we need help:
Cleaning – could you give a couple of hours every 3 weeks or so to help us clean the
church?
Church yard maintenance – We try to meet monthly on a Saturday morning for 2 hours to look after the churchyard. Odd jobs that need doing from time to time.
Fund raising – The happy band of people that make up the Friends of St Peter’s has been
raising money for the church building since 1995. But now we really need folk with
energy and enthusiasm to help raise the funds to keep this grade 1 listed heritage
building from crumbling.
Money is always needed. If it’s not the roof, it’s the stonework or the plaster work or the bees or death watch beetle, or mildew or …
There are always things that need doing in and outside this building which we all care
about.
If you are interested in finding out more, please do contact: –
shirley.garlick19@btinterent.com or phone 07925170803.
Thornton & Bagworth Parish council
Markfield and Thornton theatre group (MTTG)
Markfield and Thornton Theatre Group (MTTG) is based at Thornton Community Centre .
We welcome new members. We meet every Wednesday 7:30 – 10 pm at Thornton Community centre.
Our next production is “The Vicar of Dibley “on 10th to 13th June 2026.
Contact: MTTG. Theatre@gmail.com.
The theatre group are currently taking part in the all England 1 Act Play Festival.
They finished 3rd in the quarter finals this week and qualified for the Central Area semi final in May.
Paul Hurst and Wayne Roberts were nominated for best male performance and Wayne won.
Charlotte Parish and Katie Wells were nominated for best female performance.
The group received the adjudicator’s award for the best choreography sequence.
Why not pop along on a Wednesday evening and meet the ‘players’.
Showtime Circus Academy – Thornton Community Centre
Thornton Nature Notes
Summer visitors arrive as Winter birds depart.
Cool breezy weather in early March encouraged birds to linger and migration seemed to be on hold.
A single Egyptian Goose was at the out flow on the 11th and two Ravens were fly overs.
On the 13th 120 Starlings were heading east and eight Snipe were at the Top End.
Two Kingfishers were chasing each other on the 14th and photos from a nearby private site confirmed mating.
Warm and sunny weather on March 18th had Brimstone and Peacock on the wing and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was drumming from the Church yard.
Noctule and Pipistrelle bats were also out at dusk.
On the 19th good numbers of Smooth Newts were active in the garden pond and the Wigeon count on the reservoir reached 61.
The final Webs count took place on March 21st and totals included 75 Mallard, 44 Tufted Duck, 35 Coot,25 Great Crested Grebe and 22 Moorhen. Also on this date 9 Buzzards, 4 Skylarks and my first Holly Blue of the year were noted.
March 25th observations revealed that seasonal change overs were taking place. A female Brambling was feeding up before heading back north, and three male Swallows were new in from their wintering grounds at the Western Cape of South Africa.
On the following day a Little Ringed Plover was on the dam and more recently there has been a probable pair.
As March drew to a close Buzzards, Red Kites, Peregrines Sparrowhawks and Kestrel were all recorded, and many were displaying.
My first Comma was sunning itself on the month’s final day.
April has commenced with typically changeable weather and some very warm days.
On the first a male Goosander was heading north, and on the second a Tortoiseshell butterfly was in the garden.
On April 5th Sandmartin numbers had increased to 130 but the highlight was an Osprey that flew west.
On the following day three Common Sandpipers were on the dam, three Red Kite were circling and Linnet was added to the year list.
Orange Tip was an addition to the butterfly list.
The thrill of April 8th was a stunning male Emperor Moth found by Dave.
This species despite being common and well distributed is rarely seen. This may be due to a short flight season, so the glorious weather was an important factor.
As I write summer visitors are arriving with House Martin and Willow Warbler new in. The dawn chorus is in full swing as bird species commence their breeding cycle.
Avoiding disturbance of hidden nests is much appreciated at this time.
Andy Smith 11/04/2026
See the separate Nature Notes page for more information.
Working Party – St Peter’s church, Thornton
There will be a churchyard working party this Saturday (11th April) from 10am until 12 noon.
All the usual jobs as ever! Do hope you are able to join us even for a short while. Remember stout gloves, and shoes and any tools you might like to use.
Shirley G
Thornton Open Gardens – Sunday 21st June
Sunday 21st June 2026
1.00pm to 6.00pm
Thornton is holding its biennial Open Gardens event on Sunday 21st June from 1-6pm.  Contrasting gardens will be open for you to wander around and enjoy. There will also be refreshments – including cream teas –  and a plant stall.
Dogs on leads are welcome at many of the gardens.
Proceeds
All proceeds from this event are for the maintenance, restoration and improvement of our beautiful historic church.
Cost
£5.00, accompanied children free.
How to get tickets / programmes
Programmes will be available from Thornton Nurseries, The Bricklayers Arms, The Corner Shop. St. Peter’s Church, all participating gardens and the Community Centre.
Contact the organisers
Phone: 01530 231 502
Email:Â thornton.opengardens@outlook.com
Directions / Parking
Head for LE67 IAH
Some parking is available at the Community Centre.
Accessibility: It should be noted that Thornton is built on a ridge and so many of the gardens are on slopes or are terraced with steps and are therefore not ideal for those in wheelchairs or with impaired mobility. Some of the pavements are also narrow. Our printed programme attempts to indicate those more suitable.
The Thornton – The Disorderly
Thornton 