A concert of carols and readings for Christmas with guest speaker J John and music from the Little Town Choir. Recorded by Shine Radio at Petersfield Festival Hall.

Credits

Welcome - Esme Kelly
Reading - Zach Harris
Poem - Mo Hernaman
Reading - Anne Glenn
Reading - Killy John
Christmas Unwrapped talk - J John
Blessing - John Callaghan
Choir - The Little Town Choir
Music - Steve Udall
Organisers - John, Jon and Josh from Petersfield Area Churches Together

Venue

Petersfield Festival Hall

Recording

Petersfield's Shine Radio

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Local author Suzie Wilde and Tim O'Kelly of One Tree Books immerse you in a monthly indulgence of literature, storytelling and the world of books.

A zoom guest this month – Ian Skewis who chats about how he’s become a publisher and what, why, when and where all royalties are going (it’s a charity).
We are joined in person by Sally, Dorota and Anna from the bookshop.

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Local Postie Steve is once again this year collecting your empty chocolate and biscuit boxes. All for Macmillan.

An initiative by Green King pubs, Tubs for Pubs raised over £24,000 last year.

You can drop your boxes off at the Royal Mail Customer Collect office until the 10th February

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Leeroy Scott has been doing all he can to raise funds to help his hometown in Jamaica.

He was raised in the rural Parish of St Elizabeth and following the devastation of hurricane Melissa in October, is trying to help his community to rebuild their lives again.

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From 14 January 2026  Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery opens a new exhibition: Sara Lee: Chalk Lines. Drawings from the South Downs.

Sara was the winner of the Museum's South Downs Open, (2025) when they exhibited 130 artists and a winner was chosen for this prize exhibition. 

Louise Weller, the Museum and Art Gallery's Head of Collections and the exhibition's curator, tells Mike Waddington about what you can expect from the exhibition and the activities around it (including a South Downs walk and a talk from the artist herself on 7 February.)

Louise also announces that thanks to a substancial grant won from The Art Fund, a new resource will be developed at Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery to make the thousand pieces in the Flora Twort Collection more easily available and added to.

It is a challenging time for the Museum who in the New Year will be open one day less, from Wednesday to Saturday. There are lots of ways to engage with the material the Museum and Art Gallery holds for the community in Petersfield and local support is vital Louise says.

More about Chalk Lines at Exhibitions | Petersfield Museum

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Christmas is a time for cheer, but some may find it hard to find something to smile about.

Agencies working together once again are working with the Salvation Army and the Foodbank to ensure everyone will get a special food hamper, and with every child will have a present to open on Christmas Day.

Shine Radio asked Agencies Working Together coordinator, Steve Field how we can all help

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Christmas should be a time of fun, and it can be if you watch for some of the pitfalls.

Amanda Whiteland-Smith from Citizens Advice offers advice on how to spend wisely within your means, watch out for those Christmas scams and what help is available for relationship breakdowns.

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This week we are on the south downs at the sustainability centre. If you were in the navy back in the day you may have known it better as HMS Mercury but these days it is very different.

So we're going to speak to the people who run the courses for schools and adults in woodland activities and crafts, organise music and theatre and provide accommodation to walkers.

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Finally the stormy weather subsides and field sports return. In football, title chasing Petersfield the Rams travel to Andover needing to keep the pressure up on Stoneham as both teams forge ahead of the pack in search of league glory. https://www.petersfieldtownfc.co.uk/ . Liss Athletic aren't afraid of a tough challenge in fact, they thrive on it. No bigger challenge exists than top of the table Crofton Saints in their back yard. https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/lissathletic . Pompey are now embroiled in a relegation battle and must pick up points from teams also in the same fight. This Saturday they hosted Blackburn Rovers. Also in the football we hear from Ben Bentley, the man charged with all the exciting development projects over at Love Lane and Penns Place. Petersfield rugby club have accepted the challenge of proving they can mix it with the best sides in Regional 2 South league. All that needs doing now is to show it. On Saturday they accepted visitors Winchester who started their own league campaign with 10 wins from 10. https://www.petersfieldrfc.club/ . In the Hockey, the mens 1st side have started to impress recently and it's starting to pay off into results and points. Gillingham come to Bedales in the hope of halting their progress and the womens side take on Aldershot. https://www.petersfieldhockeyclub.com/ . All 6 sides from the Petersfield table tennis club took to the tables last week, we have all the results here. https://www.petersfieldttclub.org.uk/

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Petersfield author Michelle Magorian is probably most known for her book (and film and musical) Goodnight Mr Tom.

She talks to Mike Waddington about her inspirations, her acting roles (including Joseph and HIs Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and her appearance as Orinoco Womble), and her enjoyment in every day conversation despite being socially shy.

Her father was in the navy so she spent years abroad and on her return she understood what challenges are. She holds to the Chinese proverb that a problem is a gift in disguise.

More at Homepage of MichelleMagorian.com 

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