WYCOMBE Swan and Aylesbury Waterside theatres have suspended all their shows until Easter because of the coronavirus pandemic.
They had hoped to resume productions at the end of February but in a statement at the weekend Aylesbury Waterside said: “We apologise for the inconvenience caused but hope you will understand given the exceptional circumstances.”
Wycombe Swan said: “We are working to reschedule as many of the affected performances as we can. Inevitably this will not be possible for all events, and some shows will not be rescheduled.”
Affected shows at the Swan include comic Jack Dee and the musical Hairspray. At Waterside they include Strictly dancers Anton du Beke and Erin Boag and the comic Jason Manford. Both theatres say they are hoping to resume on Easter Saturday, 3 April.
At Windsor, the Theatre Royal says it is closed until further notice and has no scheduled shows on its website. The Elgiva Theatre at Chesham is also closed but is streaming shows it was due to show live on the big screen. That includes the Royal Ballet’s Giselle on 6 February.
All the theatres have had a terrible year and have their staff on furlough, but they are determined to see through the crisis. The independent Kenton Theatre at Henley is asking for public donations to enable it to cover basic expenses while it remains closed
Neighbours help dig out stranded ambulance
A FEW centimetres of snow was enough to cause disruption in the area yesterday. Vehicles trying to negotiate the steeper climbs of Amersham Hill, Hammersley Lane and Cock Lane were stuck for a time and the Penn to High Wycombe bus service was suspended.
In Seer Green neighbours rushed out of their homes with shovels and sand to enable an ambulance stuck at the bottom of Orchard Road/Bottom Lane to continue on its way, while at Adams Park and the old town hall site in High Wycombe firefighters cleared the car parks to enable people arriving for the Covid vaccination to park and walk inside safely.
Temperatures were expected to drop to the coldest of the winter so far last night, but a thaw is forecast to begin today and continue during the week.
Coronavirus update
- Chiltern Railways begins a reduced timetable today. The green bin garden waste collection has been suspended in neighbouring South Bucks (Beaconsfield) area because of staff shortages due to Covid.
- Buckinghamshire Fire Brigade has been praised for the way it has adapted to the pandemic in a report by the Fire Service Inspectorate published at the weekend. Fire fighters have driven ambulances, delivered essential PPE supplies and trained care home staff in infection control in addition to their traditional fire-fighting role.
- The number of new coronavirus cases in our immediate area is continuing to fall. In the seven days to 19 January there were 23 new cases in the Penn area (which also includes Holmer Green and Knotty Green) compared to 26 in the seven days to 12 January. In Tylers Green there were 19 new cases compared to 25, and in Hazlemere 20 new cases compared to 25.
Briefly…
Big winner – Marlow golfer Tyrrell Hatton won the Abu Dhabi championship yesterday and seems likely to rise even higher up the world rankings. He is currently number nine in the world after winning the PGA championship at Wentworth last October
Flood alerts – The Environment Agency said last night that it expected river levels in the area to remain high for the next few days. It has issued flood alerts for the River Thames between Hurley and Cookham and for Henley, Remenham and Medmenham.