On Saturday 26 June, the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Branch of the ESU joined with the Wessex Branch of the Royal Over-Seas League for a Lunch Party in the garden of Blandford Forum’s oldest house, predating the Great Fire of 1731.
After a week of almost continual rain, the clouds parted at mid-day and the sun shone on the gleaming marquee and gazebo, bedecked with bunting, as members and their guests arrived.
The extension of the lockdown by four weeks meant that numbers had to be restricted but since this was, for many, the first social gathering in over a year the party turned out to be a lively and entertaining success.
At the end of the day, both organisations were able to report a welcome profit towards their ongoing charitable work.