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Caversham – a great place to live

CAVERSHAM WAS in the media spotlight in March when the Sunday Times announced its annual guide to the Best Places to Live in the UK. The list was published on the 20 March and featured 72 locations across the UK, including Caversham.
The paper’s team of expert judges travelled the country, with the top spot going to Norwich. Their judging criteria included schools, mobile signal coverage, broadband speeds and the quality of transport links. Of Caversham, the judges said it offered the best of both worlds, with its quiet riverside streets and Victorian and Edwardian homes a short walk from Reading, with its fast rail links to London, major employers…Read More

Art and community

WITH THE Caversham Arts Trail coming up in the middle of the month, it seems appropriate to have a number of articles focusing on creativity. Our centre pages (p10-11) reproduce the map for the Arts Trail – do take the opportunity to visit the venues and perhaps be tempted to buy the work of our talented artists.
A different form of community public art is the subject of our Yarn Bomb article (p4), and our Creative Caversham (p9) features Arts Trail participant, John Nicholls, whose sculptures will be on show…Read More

Dan Muston: Sometimes kindness is something much bigger…

KINDNESS CAN BE a small gesture, a kind word, or holding a door open for someone. But sometimes kindness is something much bigger. Sometimes it quite literally saves a life. That’s exactly what happened in the Muston family.
Reuben Muston was a promising young boxer with 19 wins under his belt when, in March 2022, a routine fight suddenly took a frightening turn. A blow caused his nose to bleed, and the bleeding didn’t stop for five days. After two weeks in hospital, Reuben received devastating news; he had the rarest form of blood cancer, Aplastic Anaemia. Doctors explained that finding a bone marrow match would be extremely unlikely because the condition was so rare…Read More

On the hunt for the best full English breakfast in Reading

NATHAN’S NIBBLES in Prospect Street hit the podium with local foodie Dean when he published his Reading Fry-up Rankings in March this year. Dean ate ten fry-ups across Reading as part of his EatDrinkWithDean fry-up series, available on Instagram and YouTube. Checking out everything from sausages and black pudding to proper builders’ tea, he has been on the hunt for the best full English breakfast in Reading. After sampling the ten fry-ups, he ranked Nathan’s Nibbles second only to 3Bs on the Oxford Road…Read More

Floral Yarn Bomb

AT THE START of May, there will be a stunning new community craft installation on display featuring a colourful array of gorgeous flowers made over a four-month period with the help of more than 25 local knitters and crocheters.
The decorative panel, measuring 11 by 6 feet, will cover one of the many unsightly temporary fence panels which are fencing off dangerous sections of the historic walls. The idea for this came to me on a dreary day in November when the much-loved gardens were looking particularly forlorn, surrounded as they are by security fences. I decided I would like to design and create a sort of comfort blanket to show the gardens are still cared for…Read More

An Ancient Art

DID YOU know that St Dunstan is the patron saint of bell ringers? Of course you did! To commemorate our patron saint, St Margaret’s Church, in the picturesque estate village of Mapledurham (RG4 7TR), will be marking Bell Sunday on 10 May, by demonstrating the ancient art of bell ringing. Some of our ringers will be in the church from 10:00 on Sunday, before the 11:15 service, to talk about the bells and bell ringing, and to give visitors the opportunity to try their hand. You don’t have to be religious to ring bells, and you can leave before the service if you wish, but the bell-themed service will end with coffee and bell-shaped biscuits!…Read More

For your bookshelf…

FOURBEARS FEST 2026 has been so busy and exciting this year, but we’ve still found time for some reading (let’s face it, there’s always time for reading…). The pick for little readers this month is picture book Meanwhile Back on Earth… by Oliver Jeffers. This is yet another captivating story paired with charming illustrations from Jeffers for kids and parents to share and enjoy together. For adults, this month doubles as one of our book group’s picks: Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey. Meet Maggie, a 29-year-old divorcée who is attempting to get back on her feet after her marriage unexpectedly ends after 608 days. Relationships, love, careers, modern life, Maggie has it all figured out… until she doesn’t…Read More

Fourbears Fest children’s author events

THIS YEAR’S children’s programme for Fourbears Fest took place on the weekend of 14/15 March. Organised by Reading Children’s Book Group (RCGB) on behalf of Fourbears Books, the two author events on Saturday and three on Sunday were an unprecedented success. For the first time in the festival’s three years, an author was popular enough to fill the hall at Queen Anne’s School. Families came from as far afield as the New Forest and Letchworth to see Harriet Muncaster, creator of the hugely popular Isadora Moon books, who was introducing her new series about Wiska Wildflower.
The other events took place in Fourbears bookshop. Picture book author and illustrator Steve Anthony opened the programme celebrating the 10th anniversary of his classic …Read More

Happy Wanderer finds treasure on Fisher’s Yard

IN MARCH I was presented with a box of ‘treasures’ which had belonged to Molly Casey. I never met Mrs Casey, but had certainly heard of her from her work for the Reading Civic Society, and the Caversham and District Residents’ Association.
In the box were two watercolour paintings; skilled, attractive, and representing immediately recognisable Caversham scenes. One of them is signed P Seaby. The one I’ve chosen to write about is unsigned, but may well be by the same artist. I thought I’d write about them, before giving them to Reading Museum and Art Gallery…Read More

New look – Artists & Makers Fair

THE FAIR HAS been running successfully since it started in 2021, giving the many talented local artists and craftspeople the opportunity to show and sell their work. But now the organisers want to help our local creative community even more. This year, all proceeds from the Fair will go towards local arts and crafts projects. Organiser, Michelle Edmunds, explains, “We hope to encourage as much involvement in arts and crafts as possible, and this seems a good way to do it. The more people who attend the Fairs, the more cash we will be able to raise for local projects”.
Regular visitors can still expect to find a wide range of unique, high-quality arts and crafts which provide interesting and unique alternatives to the mass-produced items found online and in stores. And you get to meet the artists and craftspeople too!…Read More

The best place to live, really

READING MAY not have made the longlist for the UK City of Culture 2019, but Caversham did feature recently in the UK’s best places to live 2026 list – or at least as judged by one national newspaper. Such lists usually don’t please everyone, whether because of what is or is not included, or doubts about the entire idea of a ‘best place to live’, but they can also make entertaining reading for those same reasons.
The usual suspects appear in lists such as these – the river, transport links, independent shops, schools, pubs and restaurants. And then each of us will have our own take on it, depending on where our interests lie…Read More

The time to get to bed?

WHAT ARE YOUR thoughts about formal summer bedding? Those borders with neat rows of marigolds, petunias or antirrhinums standing in colourful military style. I rather like them, and there was a time when I attempted to achieve something similar with the borders in my garden. Yet fashions change, even in the gardening world, and now keen gardeners try for a more naturalistic look to their plots.
I mention this because now is the time to plant out the summer bedding, and regardless of whether you are hoping for something considered formal or trying for a more natural look, there are a great many choices to light up your garden…Read More

Spring Show Success

THERE WERE some beautiful exhibits at the Caversham Horticultural Spring Show held on Saturday 28 March at Caversham Baptist Church. At the Prize Giving, the President of the Society, Mr Les Cooper, said he was surprised by the quality of the exhibits. Show Secretary, Gwyneth Rowlands, was delighted to see plenty of daffodils and tulips, despite the weather, as well as some members entering for the first time this year.
Hugh Hamilton, from Caversham Heights, had not entered before and was very surprised to walk away with two firsts, a specimen tulip and six stems of flowering shrubs, a second place for three stems of tulip, and a third place for his specimen daffodil. He said he only entered because his neighbour, Hazel Blackburn, encouraged him to have a go and he had not expected to win anything…Read More

Caversham Wildlife Rescue and Support

LOCAL WILDLIFE, in particular the wildfowl along the Thames have featured regularly in the Caversham Bridge, including our March lead article from Roslyn Weaver. A new, locally based, group, Caversham Wildlife Rescue and Support (CWRS) has been set up by a small group of concerned local people to care for and protect the local wildlife. The group has a particular focus on the swans, geese and other wildlife who have all made the Thames here in Caversham their home. The group’s initial motivation came about with concerns over the decimation of our swans by Avian Flu in other locations on the River Thames earlier this year. We feared the swan population in Caversham might suffer…Read More

The Local Scene – Spill

SPILL OPENED its doors for the first time on 14 December 2024 and, now in its second year, it already feels like a well-established part of Caversham’s café and barscene. With its bright yellow chairs with red cushions adding a colourful note to the precinct, it has become a very popular venue. The team on duty when I visited for coffee comprised of Tommy and Holly, and they were happy to chat. During the day Spill focuses on ethically sourced coffee with freshly baked, locally sourced cakes and tasty treats, as well as wine and beer. In the evening it becomes more of a cocktail and wine bar, with a wide range of expertly designed cocktails (some of which have been invented by the staff and team), locally sourced craft ales, and an extensive selection of wines…Read More

National tour of Glitch ends – but fight for justice goes on

RABBLE THEATRE’S 17-venue tour of Britain with Glitch, which began in February ended mid-April with performances at Reading University’s Minghella Studio. Having taken the production from Plymouth to Newcastle, with a brief stop in Wales, there has been an overwhelming response to the play about the Post Office scandal commissioned by the University of Reading School of Law – a massive undertaking by a small theatre company…Read More

What’s with the Fuel Prices?

THE PRICE of fuel has rocketed, with national petrol and diesel prices averaging 150.11p and 177.86p a litre, their highest for over two years. This is a knock-on effect of the war in the Middle East, and specifically the chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil normally transits onto global markets. Due to consequent supply restrictions, the price of oil has soared to well above $100 a barrel. Since petrol and diesel are made from oil, their costs are impacted directly, with a $10 increase in oil pushing fuel prices up by around 7p per litre at the pump…Read More

Eco Tip – Reduce energy use to cut fuel bills

AT THE END of next month we expect a major hike in the energy price cap, and we can expect higher prices to last at least throughout next winter.
Heating costs are minimal in the summer months, but now is the time to look at other ways to reduce your energy consumption, although not all of these ideas will suit every household.
If your hot water comes via a hot water tank, but the family tends to use electric showers rather than baths, then consider turning off your hot water heating for the summer and autumn. Mains water supply is warmer during the summer months and perfectly OK for hand washing. Boiling a kettle to do the washing-up (if you are not a dishwasher household) is cheaper than having the hot water system heating up a tankful every day…Read More

Hands Up – your local community needs you!

DO YOU have any spare time or have you recently retired? Do you want to contribute to your local community? Do you enjoy meeting new people? Then Caversham Good Neighbours (CGN) is where you can help.
CGN has been helping local residents for 60 years, even through the pandemic, by organising lifts to hospitals, doctors’ appointments and other medical needs. We also do a lot of local trips to help with lunch clubs, hairdressers and dental appointments. We urgently need more drivers. CGN organises approximately 80 lifts per month and we need more drivers to ensure that we can fulfil the requests …Read More

Do you use Gmail?

GMAIL IS widely used and has lots of useful features. But the address autofill has a bad habit of remembering addresses you no longer use. Old addresses will often autofill without you realising, and then you wonder why there was no reply! The obvious thing to do is to check your address book and make the appropriate deletions. But having explored all the options in Gmail I could not find an address book. Is it me?
Finally, an online search came up with the answer. There is an address book, but you need to log in to a different system to access it! Enter https://contacts.google.com and you will find a menu offering a choice of Contacts, Frequent Contacts and Other Contacts…Read More

20th Anniversary Makes A Splash!

THIS MAY BANK Holiday weekend means the start of a summer of celebration of local art and craft with Henley Arts Trail (HAT) marking its second decade. Last year HAT drew 25,000 visitors to its range of studios, stately homes, vineyards and other prestigious venues, including the Leander Club. This year, as part of the 20th Anniversary celebrations, art lovers can cruise down the Thames from central Henley to the River House venue at Greenlands and enjoy afternoon tea! Sadly, one of HAT’s founders, Judith Fletcher, died last year, and in her memory ArtSpark has been launched, to inspire and support the next generation of artists…Read More

Dark Showering

THE LATEST WELLNESS trend and ‘sleep hack’ involves switching off the bathroom light before stepping into the shower. In the dimness, the water feels louder, the day’s visual clutter fades, and the hope is that sleep will come more easily. This practice, often called ‘dark showering’, is growing, with people claiming that washing before bed in near darkness leads to deeper and faster sleep.
Light is not only for seeing; bright light in the evening signals to the brain’s internal body clock that it is still daytime…Read More