The Hatley Village Association (HVA) operates under the auspices of the Parish Council to raise funds for Hatley community projects, including the village hall, Hatley St George church and the playing field in Hatley St George.
Over the years it has organised all sorts of events (it still does!), including talks, discos, race nights and the village fête – as well as the regular events we highlight below.
Proceeds raised from HVA events are held by Hatley Parish Council in a village fund.
Coffee Mornings
It’s the place to go for a natter with neighbours and friends over a nice cup of coffee or tea and a slice of yummy cake, usually freshly made for the day.
Sue Wright’s ‘Mad Hatley’s Tea Party’ cake collection, made for the Coffee Morning’s first birthday in 2017.
Judging from the hubbub when walking in to the first Hatley Coffee Morning on Tuesday, 4th October 2016, here was welcome social gathering – and well over six years later, it has grown in popularity and become fully established as a regular monthly event.
It was started by Linda Hudson and Mervyn Lack. Linda, who lives in East Hatley, continues to be run the event to help raise funds for the village – there’s no set charge for anything, just a handy pot to drop in a donation.
Special mention to two brilliant regular cake-makers Pam Offord and Sue Wright – not forgetting many others who have contributed from time to time (and often still do): thanks to you all.
Date First Tuesday of each month.
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm.
Food / drink Tea, coffee and a variety of cakes for sale by donation.
Place Hatley village hall.
The Pop-up pub
The HVA’s first ‘under new management’ event was a pop-up pub social evening at the ‘The Old Hatley Arms’ in the village hall on 4th November 2022.
Linda Hudson, who ran the bar, said it was pretty busy from when the doors opened at seven o’clock and got busier and busier as the evening progressed – and how nice it was to see families with their children.
The next ‘pop-up’ will be a winter gathering – a social evening where you can leave any New Year hangovers and the gloom of winter behind and be among friends and neighbours with an opportunity to enjoy a drink or two and lots of chat and gossip.
For the evening the village hall will be converted into the ‘Old Hatley Arms’ pub – and, of course, there will be a licensed bar.
Dates Please check the Hatley What’s On for upcoming openings.
Time 7.00 to 10.00 pm.
Drink Licensed bar.
Place Hatley village hall.
The Famous Hatley Quiz
The first Saturday evening in February was the regular date for ‘The Famous Hatley Quiz’ – a pub-style quiz for all the family for teams of up to six going through ten rounds of ten questions plus a ‘table’ round. The Covid pandemic put an end to that – but it has been revised in the form of Valentine’s Pub Quiz, taking place on Saturday, 11th February 2023 in the village hall (with a licensed bar) at 7.00 pm.
Studying the ‘table round’ questions at a Hatley Quiz Night.
There is, though, a twist at the end – the winning team, in addition to each member receiving a bottle of wine, gets to set and present the following year’s quiz.
The first Hatley Quiz, on 18th February 2012 as a fund-raiser for the Village Hall, was run by Alan and Pauline Pinney who wanted to kick the idea off but not commit themselves to always doing it – so started the ‘your turn next year’ tradition.
This has given the quizzes an unexpected air, for the quiz-setters work as a team to pool ideas rather than the usual one person downloading a predictable set of questions from the internet.
An innovation in 2015 was to project the questions onto the back wall of the Village Hall – an idea from Allen Miller of East Hatley – to supplement the questions being read out. This proved to be very welcome because it gives more time to think about / discuss the answer with your team-mates, although there’s still the opportunity to ask for any questions to be repeated at the end of each round.
And what sort of questions? The usual favourite subjects always crop up – food, sport, films, TV, geography, nature etc, but there’s room for almost any subject as long as it’s not too obscure, for it is meant to be an enjoyable evening out where everyone has the opportunity to do well.
Date Please check the Hatley What’s On for details of the February 2025 quiz.
Time 7.00 for 7.30 pm.
Team Six per team.
Food Bring your own for the half-time break.
Drink Licensed bar.
Place Hatley village hall.
The annual Hatley Pancake Race
This is another great initiative of Linda Hudson – and, when it first began in 2016, Mervyn Lack.
The 2022 children’s race – won by Ali Hooper.
It’s all about having fun and exercise on the Sunday before Shrove Tuesday in the road outside 34 East Hatley.
While not always blessed with good weather (one year the wind destroyed their gazebo), it is usually well attended with much enjoyment and prizes for the successful participants.
There are individual races for ladies, men and children, a walking race for the less able-bodied and a three-legged race to end with.
Linda provides all the prizes – as well as the pancakes and coffee.
Entry is free – just bring a frying pan.
Date Please check the Hatley What’s On for details of the 2025 event.
Time 2.00 pm.
Pancakes Bring your frying pan.
Drink Coffee provided.
Place Outside 34 East Hatley.
The Hatley Christmas Tea
The first Sunday afternoon in December was another regular date for everyone in Hatley – as a start of getting into the Christmas spirit. As with the Hatley Quiz, the pandemic prevented it happening for a couple of years – until the HVA revived it in 2022 as the Christmas Shindig.
![Mr Ho-Ho-Ho [2] at the Hatley Christmas Shindig - Hatley village hall, 3rd December 2022 - [Photo: Linda Hudson].](https://www.hatley.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Hatley-Christmas-Shindig-2-3-12-22-Mr-Ho-Ho-Ho-2-Photo-Linda-Hudson-IMG-WA0020-Square-pic-125-x-125-px.jpg)
Mr Ho-Ho-Ho did a star turn at the Christmas Shindig. Photo: Hudson.
There was tea, coffee and soft drinks, many cakes and a variety of mince pies to gobble up.
Some years there has also been mulled wine on offer and in 2016 a special Men’s Baking competition when the men of Hatley were encouraged to bake a cake all on their own, which seven did.
The two judges declared Alan Pinney the winner, even though the competition was his idea – honestly, the result wasn’t fixed. The judges also decided eating so many (small) samples of cake was really hard work and not good for the waist line.
Like the Coffee Mornings, it’s a chance for neighbours and friends to sit around and simply chat to one another on a chilly December afternoon before the real fun of Christmas gets underway.
Date Please check the Hatley What’s On for details of the December 2024 Tea.
Time 2.00 to 4.00 pm.
Food Lots of cakes and mince pies, sandwiches and rolls.
Drink Licensed bar.
Place Hatley village hall.
Page created 27 February 2019; updated 26th July 2024. ▲