Chobham Carnival

TOP PHOTO: Overall procession winners West Byfleet Guides and Brownies with the carnival king and queen and the parade judge, Surrey Heath Mayor Pat Tedder. Photo by Anthony Gurr. ABOVE: Carnival-goers, dressed to defy the constant rain, were amazed by a Stannage Stunt Team rider performing at this year’s Chobham Carnival. Photo courtesy of Anthony Gurr

CHOBHAM’S BIGGEST AND BEST COMMUNITY EVENT OF THE YEAR

Record-breaking ball

boosts grants total

RECORD May Ball proceeds have enabled the carnival association to donate more than it expected – over £5,000 – to good causes. Non-stop rain on carnival day reduced the event’s takings but this year’s dinner dance in the village hall the previous Saturday raised several thousands of pounds, eclipsing previous years’ profits. This enabled 20 organisations to receive grants from the association’s 2024 allocation. “The carnival wasn’t a washout, despite the terrible weather, but there wasn’t a financial surplus,” said association chairman Tim Elwin. “However, the ball was a spectacular success, enabling us to distribute around the usual amount of money. “We had a record attendance and some fantastic lots were donated for the auctions. Many generous businesses supported us by giving valuable items to be sold. There were also attractive donations for the raffle.” The largest good-cause grant, £500, went to Chobham Army Cadets, who help marshal the carnival procession and run the fete’s coconut shy. The money will help fund group activities and outings. The recently formed Chobham amateur dramatics group received £320, which will pay for the hire of rehearsal rooms as members prepare for their first production, a pantomime, next January. St Lawrence Friends Heritage Trust will put its £300 into the fund being raised to repair the village church’s broken clock. The Friends of St Lawrence School received £300 to help maintain and run the Chobham primary’s swimming pool. The school itself was also given £300, which will go towards repairing its Key Stage 2 trim trail. Chobham’s Jackanory Pre-school will use its £300 to buy an iPad for use by its special needs staff member. Chobham Agricultural and Horticultural Society also received £300, to help with its annual show’s running costs. Carnival performers SV Elite Dance Studios – whose performers have represented England in the Dance World Cup – got a £300 donation. Woking High School received a grant for the first time and will put its £250 towards buying equipment for extracurricular activities. Chobham Museum’s £250 grant will pay for redecoration of its building. Chobham Festival received £250 to help publicise and set up its children’s history trail in the church this October. Chobham Parish Council also received £250, towards buying large poppies to display on lampposts during the 2024 Remembrance commemorations. Grants of £250 also went to Chobham Scout Group, for setting up a quiet room in its HQ, and Quest Riding for the Disabled, to be used to help fund a new dressage arena. Chobham Care, whose volunteers transport residents on vital journeys such as trips to hospital appointments, was given £250 to help cover its rising running costs. The same amount went to the Friends of Valley End School. Surrey and Woking District RSPCA will put its £200 towards running costs. West Byfleet Guides and Brownies – who were overall winners in this year’s carnival procession – also received £250. The Woking and Sam Beare Hospice boutique in Chobham, which generously dresses the carnival king and queen, received £100 to help with the cost of new clothes hangers. The final grant of £50 went to Chobham Country Market, which is investing in a mobile wi-fi connection to make its bank card reader more efficient. The association is already starting to plan next year’s carnival, which will be on Monday 5 May. If you have any suggestions for making the event an even better experience, perhaps an idea for the procession theme, email Tim on timelwin@gmail.com. See you in 2025!

IT rained non-stop all day and there was mud everywhere, but this year’s Chobham Carnival was far from a wash-out. All the entrants arrived to take part in a soggy procession through the village, watched by hundreds of people who were resisting the awful weather. The carnival’s arena entertainment had to be reduced because of the slippery surface but there were more stalls and sideshows than ever before and plenty of smiling faces around the recreation ground. “We were staggered by the numbers who watched the procession despite the rain,” said carnival association chairman Tim Elwin. “They saw some fantastic depictions of prehistoric people and creatures, showing that some massive effort went into making the floats. “We want to say a huge thank-you to the procession entrants, the stallholders and the performers and, of course, the crowds who put on coats and wellies and came out to support the carnival.” The procession judge, Surrey Heath Mayor Pat Tedder, decided the overall procession winners were West Byfleet Guides and Brownies, who had dozens of dinosaurs large and small in their group. Coworth Flexlands School built a life-size depiction of a terrifying prehistoric sea monster to win the prize for the best walking entry and St Lawrence Primary School’s mini-smoking volcano took the best young people trophy. The weather was too wet for Horsell-based Prime Acrobatics to stage their display but the Punch and Judy was moved indoors to the Parish Pavilion for two shows. A large contingent from Chobham and Dorking Rock Choir staged an energetic performance wearing plastic cagoules – after gamely singing out loud in the procession. Motorcycle riders from the Stannage stunt team were not deterred by the weather as they zoomed up ramps and through balls of fire – and jumped over carnival association secretary Jenny Warren’s car. Many thanks to all those who braved the non-stop rain to take part in the procession and watch the parade go by. Thanks also to those who came to the fete, to the stallholders who carried on regardless and to the volunteers who marshalled the procession and rattled buckets on the gates.

It rained and rained but the show went on