Summer newsletter

abbeyfieldviewland
Jun 13, 2024
10 min read

Updated: Apr 30

Viewlands Review – Summer 2024

Hello everyone!

Welcome to our summer magazine of 2024.

It was lovely to have that short spell of hot weather and sunshine to set us all up for the summer months. I know that many of you enjoyed sitting in the gardens.

We will be having our Summer Fair on 31st August which I know you all look forward to.

Over the next few months we have a couple of bus trips organised, one to Crieff with the bigger coach and driver, and one in September with our own lovely driver, Carl.

We have our new hairdresser Kim, and also have three new members of staff started, I am sure you will make them all feel welcome.

We are delighted to say that our residents will be taking part in Go4Gold event in August. The residents have always thoroughly enjoyed all the aspects of taking part in this inter care home competition, including all the practicing for the different events during the couple of months beforehand.

We will be looking forward to a summer of sport on the TV which will all be played in the Annexe, please come and join us.

Thanks to everyone who gave articles for this magazine, there should be something for everyone to enjoy and some lovely photos to see.

Best wishes from Kat

Summer of sport

This summer, there are several exciting sporting events we can all look forward to:

Euro 2024

Taking place in Germany from 14th June to 14th July 2024, Euro 2024 features national football teams competing for the championsh

Wimbledon 2024

The 2024 Wimbledon Championships will be held at the All-England Lawn Tennis Club from 1st July 14th July 2024.

Paris 2024 Olympics

Running from 26th July to 11th August 2024, the 33rd Olympic Games will see around 10,500 athletes competing in 329 events across 32 sports.

Paralympic Games

From 28th August to 8th September 2024, the Paralympics will feature 4,400 athletes competing in 549 events across 22 sports.

Congratulations..........

Congratulations to Przemek and his wife on the birth of their daughter Elena. Elena was Born on the 25th of May 2024 in Ninewells Hospital at 13.30pm. She weighed 6lbs 5oz.

Liliana looks very proud of her baby sister.

Spotlight on Jennifer McGregor, Trustee

Jennifer McGregor, one of our Trustees, and a familiar face on the Monday morning trolley shop, has a very interesting hobby that might surprise you! We asked Jennifer to tell us all about it…

So, Jennifer, we hear you are a regular on TV quiz shows! Have you always been a quizzer?

I’ve always loved quizzes, right from when I was a wee girl and as family we’d do the weekly general knowledge quiz in the Sunday Mail. I made it into the Dunblane Primary quiz team, making it through to the ﬁnal of the Scottish primary schools’ quiz. As a student, I played regularly in pub quizzes (the prize usually being beer!) and when I moved to Perth for my job in 1997, I joined a local pub quiz team.

How did you get on your ﬁrst TV quiz show?

One day, my son saw an advert asking for families to take part in a new family TV quiz show, and along with my dad, we decided to give it a go. We applied and made it onto the show! It was so much fun that I decided to apply for more shows, and that’s when my hobby really took off.

Can you tell us about the family quiz you were on with your dad and son?

That show was called ‘Britain’s Brightest Family’. It was hosted by TV star, Anne Hegarty, otherwise known as ‘The Governess’ on ITV’s The Chase. We made all the way to the semi-finals, losing by just one question!

What other shows have you been on?

I’ve been on Who Wants to be a Millionaire (sadly I didn’t make it into the hot seat), The Chase (I had a good ‘cash builder’ round but failed at the next stage), and a BBC afternoon show called The Tournament (which, excitingly, I won!).

How do you get on to quiz shows?

The first stage is to fill in an application form. Then, if you’re lucky, a show representative phones you, does a little interview, and then takes you through a short general knowledge quiz. Sometimes there’s an extra stage when you play a mock version of the actual show on a video call. Then, if you’re really lucky, you get ‘the call’ to say you’ve made it on to the show.

What were the hosts of the shows like?

Anne Hegarty or ‘The Governess’ was much kinder than you see on The Chase. She is very clever, very precise and very supportive of people taking part in the show.

Jeremy Clarkson on Who wants to be a Millionaire was a lot nicer than he seems on TV. He genuinely wanted everyone to do well and gave all the contestants some tips on how to perform as well as possible.

Bradley Walsh, the host of The Chase was energetic, extremely professional and immaculately dressed, but he swore a lot! They must cut a lot out when they edit the show, I think!

The Tournament was hosted by former England footballer Alex Scott. She was chatty and fun. And she is tiny! You imagine a female footballer to be tall, but she is very petite, especially when she took off her high heels and wore flip flops between takes!

Is ﬁlming the shows enjoyable?

Yes, it is a lot of fun! All the contestants are very well looked after, and it’s nice to have your hair and make-up done. The actual filming is a bit nerve-wracking, but it is very exciting. A real adrenalin rush!

Will we see you on more TV quiz shows?

Maybe! I would love to be on Tipping Point and Pointless but haven’t had any luck getting on them yet. And there are always new shows being developed that are looking for contestants. I’ll keep on applying and hopefully one day I’ll be on another show.

Best of luck with your future quizzing Jennifer!!

Harriet's Prom

Harriet has now finished at Perth High School, and her school prom was held at Dunblane Hydro Hotel recently. It was a beautiful evening when they left Perth and a great time was had by all.

Abigail's Prom

On the 5th of June, Louise’s daughter, Abigail, had her prom to celebrate leaving Bell Baxter High School.

The build-up was very exciting. Abigail and Louise went for a shopping trip in Glasgow to find a dress for the day. Luckily, the first dress Abigail tried on was perfect – a beautiful silver, sparkly colour! She then had to find a nice bag and shoes too! As the days before prom started to count down, Abigail went to get her nails done (glittery to match her dress!) and then on the morning of prom, she had her hair styled.

Louise dropped Abigail off at her friend’s house beforehand. They got some pictures taken and had a glass of fizz before they set off!

The prom was held at Pratis Barns – a gorgeous, rustic barn, converted for weddings and parties. Everyone arrived just before 7 o’clock, just in time to get a big group photo for the newspaper.

They were then served a delicious three-course meal. Abigail had lentil soup for starters, vegetable cannelloni for her main course, and then apple crumble with ice cream for dessert. Everybody really enjoyed their meal!

Afterwards, everyone had a chance to catch up with each other whilst the tables were getting cleared to make room for the dancefloor. There was then a big disco, everyone was up dancing until midnight!

It was a great night. Abigail and her friends all really enjoyed themselves. What a perfect way to celebrate the end of school!

A bit of humour...

I was visiting my granddaughter last night when I asked if I could borrow a newspaper.

"This is the 21st century," she said. "I don't waste my money on newspapers. Her, use my iPad."

I can tell you this. That fly never knew what hit him!

Can you hear that?

An old man decided his wife was getting hard of hearing. He called her doctor to make an appointment to have her hearing checked.

The doctor said he could see her in 2 weeks, and meanwhile, there is a simple, informal test the husband could do to give the doctor some idea of the dimensions of the problem.

“Here is what you do. Start about 40 feet away from her and speak in a normal conversational tone and see if she hears you. If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on until you get a response.”

So that evening she’s in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he’s in the living room, and he says to himself, “I’m about 40 feet away, let’s see what happens.”

“Honey, what’s for supper?” No response.

So, he moves to the other end of the room, about 30 feet away. “Honey, what’s for supper?” No response.

So, he moves into the dining room, about 20 feet away. “Honey, what’s for supper?” No response. On to the kitchen door, only 10 feet away. “Honey, what's for supper?" No response.

So, he walks right up behind her. “Honey, what's for supper?”

“For the 5th time, CHICKEN!!”

Cameron’s flight over Perth

I joined the Air Cadets when I was 13 and really looked forward to having a chance to fly. Unfortunately, each time I’ve been selected to fly with the cadets it’s been cancelled at the last moment due to bad weather. I was very lucky that my parents and grandparents clubbed together to buy my brother and I a flying lesson at Scone airport for our Christmas present.

We booked a couple of times, but again cancelled due to weather, but finally on 2nd June the weather was on our side!

We arrived at 1.15 and filled in all the paperwork. Then we had a short safety briefing with Andrew our instructor and it was time to head out to the runway.

I decided to go first, so I got to taxi the plane (a Cessna 152) to the runway, as Scone airport was very busy! When I got to the head of the runway Andrew asked if I would like to take off! That was a surprise, but I wanted to have a go. Thankfully, you have headphones on because I think it would have been really noisy. It was so exhilarating lifting off and climbing.

Andrew then took over to show me some of the controls before handing control back to me so I could perform the manoeuvres that he’d just taught me.

I flew over to Bankfoot, then back into Perth, over McDiarmid Park. I also flew over my school, Perth High, and could see the new building coming along well! Then over the town, over the river and then back to Scone.

Andrew was impressed that I could chat to him while keeping the plane level. Andrew then took over to land, I taxied back to the parking area where I got out and my brother went for his turn.

I got my “Pilot in Training” logbook signed. It was so much fun; I loved every second and I hope to be able to fly again soon.

Some different photos of Viewlands House over the years

You may have noticed we have a few photos of Viewlands House on display in the hall which we think would be from the early 1900’s.

We have uncovered an old CD with a presentation for a U3A talk in the early 2000’s and so now have some more information on the history of Viewlands House.

The house was built in the 1840’s. It was the home of the Rev Dr Robert Milne for 49 years. Dr Milne was minister of West St John’s Kirk, Perth. The 20th Century saw changes… Several new owners but also improvements. The Walled Garden and a tennis court, where Viewlands Court is now. 1950 - Enter the GA. General Accident bought the house for its General Manager, Mr Colin Little. He lived there with his family until 1964. In 1966, a three-storey extension was built to make it a Training College for GA.

This aerial view shows the house while it was the GA training college, with a fishpond in the front garden.

The house as architecture…..

In 1977, the main house was included in the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural and Historic interest. It is described as a “late classic styled villa”.

The latest chapter…

In 1983, the house was sold to the Abbeyfield Perth Society for conversion to a home for the elderly with extra care facilities.

The home took in its first residents in October 1986. Prince Charles visited Viewlands in April 1988 and unveiled a plaque. In 1997 another extension was completed adding 12 en-suite rooms, the conservatory and the hairdressing salon. Prince Charles visited again in 2016 and unveiled a second plaque, both can be seen in the front hall.

Here is a very unusual photo of our main staircase looking upwards which was spotted recently on a Facebook page called “Pictures of Perth and Beyond”

Perth Museum

Clarissa has been visiting the museum recently with some groups of Residents from Viewlands House.

Perth Museum opened its doors on Saturday 30 March 2024 after a £27 million redevelopment project. This world-class cultural and heritage attraction highlights the fascinating objects and stories that put Perth and Kinross at the centre of Scotland’s story.

The Stone of Destiny, also known as the Stone of Scone, is an ancient symbol of Scottish monarchy and kingdom. It played a significant role in the inauguration of Scottish monarchs at Scone. The Stone’s history stretches back through the ages, and it has been used to crown kings and queens of Scotland. Interestingly, it continues to be used in the coronation of British monarchs, including the recent coronation of King Charles III in 2023. After the coronation at Westminster Abbey, the Stone returned to Scotland and is now housed in the Perth Museum.

Our trip to the museum

On the 11th of June we had a trip to the new Perth Museum. The museum is in the old City Hall, which was opened in 1911. Music and politics were at the heart of the City Hall for nearly 100 years. The biggest actors of the day performed on stage in what is now the main hall and museum café.

We saw lots of interesting exhibits and you can, as we did, enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and a nice cake in the café afterwards.

I’m sure the new museum will be a great asset to Perth.

I hope you like the photographs showing the many things that you will see.

Greta Grieve

Future events

2nd July - Residents' Committee Meeting with Janet

16th July - Bus trip to Crieff

31st August - Summer Fayre

As well as all the regular exercise classes, curling, concerts, bingo, friends’ coffee mornings and afternoon teas!!

A BIG thank you to all who have contributed towards our magazine.

We look forward to all your future articles to keep our magazine going.

Please remember that McKenzie Bear will happily go away on any trips / holidays – he is waiting patiently on the hall shelf for his next adventure!!

Viewlands House