We are back!
Many of you will be already aware that St James is indeed now open for events, since we have had a really great response to our contemporary music evenings in July and, more recently, our classical music evenings. As a result, we have published our new Diary earlier than usual so that we can share the events that we have arranged between now and the end of the year. You should have received the Diary through your letterbox in the last few days, thanks to Guernsey Post, who have again delivered them free of charge. However, if you need further copies, just get in touch with us at St James, or see the events online at www.stjames.gg.
We have a full programme of events, including some very special exhibitions and festivals. These include the first ever St James motorcycle show on 5th and 6th September, Guernsey’s biggest gaming festival, DonkeyCon on 12th September, and the second Guernsey Community Art Festival, which we are holding in conjunction with the Guernsey Arts Commission, on 17th and 18th October. In addition we have the Sarnia Arts and crafts Exhibition from 18th September and the Fox Open Art Exhibition from 15th October. Do come along to these very special events as well as to the other events listed in the Diary.
Cabaret Dinner
Our special events also include two fund raising events for the St James Jubilee Foundation, which has supported St James during Lockdown and was one of the charitable trusts which made a generous donation to St James and thus enabled us to reopen on schedule.
The first is a Cabaret Style Dinner on Thursday 1st October. This is a musical cabaret featuring many of the finest singers, musicians and entertainers in Guernsey, showcasing songs from well-known musicals, contemporary music, acoustic guitar, opera and much more so that there will be something to appeal to everyone.
The evening commences with a champagne reception and includes a three course dinner provided by James Ferguson of Cooked. There will also be a Raffle with and an Online Auction with some spectacular items to bid for. The flyer included with this Newsletter gives further details. Tickets are available from St James and are £65 per person or £650 for a table of ten.
We are expecting this to be a sell out event so please book early in order to secure your place.
St James Big Quiz
Our second fund raising event is the St James Big Quiz on Thursday 19th November, which will be an evening packed full of fun and brain stretching trivia hosted by quiz master extraordinaire Jamie Doggart. The ticket price includes a light supper by James Ferguson of Cooked and the bar will be open all evening. Tickets are available from the St James Box Office on 711361 and cost £90 per table of up to six people (£15 per person).
There will also be a Raffle on the night and any Raffle Prizes would be much appreciated. If you are able to donate a Raffle Prize please get in touch with Fiona at St James.
Cancelled Events
Due to the closure of St James during the Covid 19 Pandemic it was unfortunately necessary to cancel a large number of events. We tried to contact all ticket holders with a choice of three options – to have a credit towards future events with a bonus element as set out on our website, to receive a refund, or to have the ticket price treated as a donation to St James. These options will lapse at the end of December, with any remaining tickets being treated as a donation to St James. If you would prefer one of the other options, please let us know before then at St James on (01481) 711361 or admin@stjames.gg.
Renovations
The major renovation works at St James continue to progress well, though the scaffolding is still with us. We now expect the main works to be completed by October, but that the external scaffolding will be with us for longer while the remaining rectification work is completed.
The good news is that the main hall should be back to its former glory well before we start the main festive season.
Cooked at St James
We are very pleased to announce that we will be reopening Café St James in September as a joint venture with James Ferguson of Cooked and that we have employed Colin Samson as our new chef and café manager. Trading as “Cooked at St James” our Café will be offering an all new menu together with a takeaway option. The Café will be open Monday to Friday during the day and will also be opening on a number of evenings and weekends to complement the events taking place at St James. Further details of these evening and weekend openings will be shown on the website alongside those events.
St James streamed
We are aware that it is not always easy for some people to get to events at St James in the evenings or that events may be missed because of conflicting engagements. To address this we have recently purchased equipment, thanks to a grant from the Guernsey Arts Commission, which will stream performances so that they can be accessed at home, either live or for later viewing. This free service to the community is expected to go live later this year and further details will be provided at that time on the website and on social media.
St James AGM
Our Annual General Meeting is in November as usual, and will be held on 11th November at St James at 7.00 pm. This is your opportunity to find out more about how St James is progressing and to hear about the Council’s plans for the future. As usual, there will be the opportunity to join the President and Council for a glass of wine at the end of the meeting and to continue the conversations in an informal context.
The AGM is when we elect our Council for the coming year. If any Member would be interested in joining Council or would like to know more about what is involved please contact Stephen Ainsworth by emailing stephen@stjames.gg or by calling St James. Nomination forms are available from St James by calling St James or emailing admin@stjames.gg.
Please take this Newsletter as the formal Notice of the AGM. Copies of the Agenda, of last year’s Minutes and the Accounts will be available by calling St James or emailing admin@stjames.gg. The Agenda will also be posted on the St James website nearer the time. Full papers will also be available on the night at the AGM.
If you wish to send Apologies or to nominate a Proxy, again please contact St James or email admin@stjames.gg.
Keep supporting St James
Finally, we do hope that you will like the events in our new Diary and will wish to come along to St James to support them. It is really important that you should do so.
Like many local businesses and charities, St James suffered financially during the Lockdown, with no event income, but continuing expenses in maintaining the building and paying the salaries of the core staff needed to run the building, deal with postponed and cancelled events and to plan for the future. Thus we do need the event income if we are to continue to be the cultural and community hub of Guernsey.
Please come along and support St James!