The Brentwood Buzz

Having met some of Brentwood's friendliest runners at the Brentwood Park Run in Weald Country Park, The Brentwood Buzz found out there is another Park Run in town - for the 4 to 14 year olds each Sunday morning.

Ever keen to keep fit and down with the kids, The Brentwood Buzz has headed down to Hutton Recreation Ground to meet some of the town's youngest athletes.

https://www.parkrun.org.uk/huttonrecreationground-juniors/

If you thought the Beast of Brentwood was a large black panther-like creature spotted roaming the town's parks in the early 2000s, think again.

Today's Beast is the bane of Brentwood Park Run's participants - a lung-challenging 5k course around Weald Country Park.

The Brentwood Park Run is one of the friendliest and most inclusive free activities available in the town on a Saturday morning, so The Brentwood Buzz has donned some running shoes and headed off to Weald Park for a bit of a weekend workout.

If this sounds like your sort of thing, you can find out how to register for the Brentwood Park Run at www.parkrun.org.uk/brentwood

The Borough of Brentwood is fortunate to have wonderful primary and secondary schools, and a plethora of enthusiastic, dedicated and patient teacher and support staff to bring the best of education to our children and young people.

The Anglo European School in Ingatestone is a secondary school specialising in modern foreign languages. Its pupils come from across Ingatestone, Brentwood and Shenfield, as well as Chelmsford and even further afield.

The Brentwood Buzz has been to meet the school's headteacher, Jody Gee, who attended primary and secondary school in Brentwood before studying English.

Her love the for subject, and her fond memories of the teachers who inspired her, let her into teaching and she is now an enthusiastic advocate for all a good and supportive education can do for everyone.

1:4:9 Productions, the new Shakespeare group about town, are bringing the Bard's Henry V to Brentwood Theatre this month.

The play sees the new King head off to France to war and the cast admits there are many familiar themes in the storyline.

The Brentwood Buzz has been to meet the cast and production team in rehearsals for the show, which will be on at Brentwood Theatre from 21st to 23rd March, including a Saturday matinee.

The rapid advance of AI technology, and a growing reliance on apps and emails to get access to anything from ordering a takeaway to booking a GP appointment, has left some of us floundering.

Code breaking might be the stuff of Bletchley Park for the flounderers, but primary school children in Brentwood have got coding cracked.

The Brentwood Buzz has been to meet some of them at a session for new-to-the-town coding club, TechyTots.

The children's book publishing world is a cut-throat place, but new Brentwood author, Laura-Jamie Morgan has grabbed it by the Rapunzels and published her own book, pointing out not all stories have to have the traditional fairytale ending.

Brentwood Theatre is one of the jewels in Brentwood's crown, and it is celebrating its 30th anniversary over the course of the next year.

The theatre was created by the town's theatrical community so they had a venue for their shows, and in the last 30 years hundreds of plays, musicals, films, and events have been enjoyed by the theatre's loyal and growing audience.

Brentwood Theatre has seen the start of many a theatrical career - both amateur and professional - none less than Ian Southgate, who is now the theatre's manager. The Brentwood Buzz has been to meet him.

Christmas is coming, so Crown Street in Brentwood is the place to go for a great choice of gift ideas at one of its fabulous independent shops.

This week, The Brentwood Buzz has been to visit one of the post-pandemic arrivals, Taylor Wines, which is doing great business with its array of fine wines, ports and gins, and is becoming a go-to destination for wine tastings too.

If you've not popped into Chantilly aka The Pink Cafe on Crown Street for a spot of lunch, a cup of coffee, or one of their amazing afternoon teas, you've been missing out!

Co-owned and run by two cousins, Natalie and Sally, Chantilly is a great little independent tearoom. Listen to this week's The Brentwood Buzz to hear why Chantilly has become the go-to place for people with Type 2 diabetes who fancy a diet-friendly treat.