Radio Ninesprings

13/12/2025

Among other bits and pieces, Greg Bown is remembering comic legend Stanley Baxter on the show this morning, who's died at the grand old age of 99. Few clips on the way between now and midday 😊😊😊

13/12/2025

Steve Bulley's BIG Question

Last year 104 million of these were stolen in the UK?

12/12/2025

This week’s edition of From the Potting Shed with Julie Haylock of Sandhurst Garden Design takes a look at the plant of the month - the Lonicera.
The Gardens Group

12/12/2025

Local News Friday 12th December

The Chief Executive of Somerset Council, Duncan Sharkey, has admitted to making mistakes in cutting council jobs. Speaking at an audit committee meeting, Mr Sharkey said senior managers “got it wrong” when they axed more than 500 jobs across three departments in the past 12 months. He said money from reserves was now being used to rebuild the housing team, which was “no longer big enough to deal with the current workload”.

Glastonbury and Somerton MP Sarah D**e is asking the government to provide clarity over the type of animal licence that visitor attractions, like the Somerset Reindeer Ranch, should have. Ms D**e is shortly to present a parliamentary bill on the issue after the Somerset Reindeer Ranch at Chilthorne Domer was told it would need to obtain a zoo licence, which would cost many thousands of pounds, to remain open.

Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance has launched an appeal to raise funds for a second helicopter. The Second Heli Appeal aims to raise £1 million toward the £10 million required to purchase and equip the new aircraft.

Yeovil MP Adam Dance is supporting a Lib Dem initiative to introduce a new ‘Farm First’ training scheme to inspire young people to take up careers in agriculture. With fewer than 5% of working farmers aged under 35, Mr Dance is concerned that Somerset could lose the next generation of farmers if careers in farming are not made more accessible. He says the ‘Farm First’ scheme would give young people a clear route into agriculture, with the training and confidence to build a future in the sector.

11/12/2025

11/12/2025

On tonight's Community Show, CEO of Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, Charles Hackett will be talking about the charity’s Second Heli Appeal to raise one million pounds to buy a second air ambulance.

The Community Show on Radio Ninesprings with Steve Haigh
Every Thursday from 7 – 9pm

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11/12/2025

Local News Thursday 11th December

A man has appeared in court in connection with an attack on another man in Wincanton. Arthur O'Brien, aged 33 from Knowle in Bristol, was charged with causing grievous bodily harm and being in possession of an offensive weapon. The charges relate to an incident on Wincanton High Street on Sunday, November 30th. Mr O’Brien was remanded in custody and will next appear in court on Friday, January 9th.

A member of Somerset Council, jailed for 26 months for taking part in a Just Stop Oil protest, may not have to stand down as a councillor. Michael Dunk was one of several Just Stop Oil activists who climbed gantries on the M25 in November 2022 to demand an end to new fossil fuel projects. Somerset Council says Councillor Dunk’s disqualification from holding office does not take effect immediately upon conviction, but only applies after the period for lodging an appeal has expired or, after the conclusion of the appeal, he is unsuccessful. They say Councillor Dunk will remain a member of the authority until he either resigns or decides not to appeal his conviction.

A woman with MND is criticising Somerset Council over the time it takes to access applications for disability facility support grants. Nicky Jones says she’s been waiting more than six months for the Council to fit adaptations to her home. She says the application process for disability facility grants isn’t working and needs to change.

NHS Somerset has announced that changes to stroke services at Yeovil Hospital will "go live" in the spring of next year. Under the changes, Yeovil Hospital will retain its acute stroke provision but from mid-2026 all hyper-acute stroke patients, who would have been treated in Yeovil, will be taken to either Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton or Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester, whichever is closer.

A Taunton man has completed 12 marathons in 12 months in memory of his mother. Peter Dunlop finished the year-long challenge this month in tribute to his mother, Jane, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2017. Peter raised £24,000 for Pancreatic Cancer UK by completing the 12 marathons.

10/12/2025

Adrian Dening's Stars Over Somerset
Monday 15th to Sunday 21st December 2025

Sunday 21st is the winter solstice, when the Sun reaches it's lowest point in the sky and the days are shortest. Look on the bright side - the days are gradually going to get longer now, by roughly 4 minutes each day as we head towards spring and summer.

We have seasons because the Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees on its axis, so the north and south poles are not directly at the top and bottom. As a child, I always wondered why the Earth on the classroom globe was mounted wonkey!

Of course astronomers prefer the winter skies, because it is dark for longer and we can get outside with our telescopes more, but why by 4 minutes each day? The Earth's sidereal day, or the time taken for us to rotate once on our axis is NOT 24 hours. It actually takes 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds. That's why, as we go through the different seasons, we progressively get lighter or darker each day by almost 4 minutes.

Things are kept simple in daily life, so we prefer to work on 24 hours, which divides up nicely into two lots of 12 hours on a clock face. Would you really like to read a clock chopped up into two halves of 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds!

Our orbit around the Sun takes 365 1/4 days, but we work on a year being exactly 365 days. We make up the missing quarters every four years by adding an extra day to February and calling it a Leap Year.

The Earth spins at just over 1000 miles per hour and we travel around the Sun at a whopping 67,000 miles per hour, but you are unaware of it because you are ON the Earth, just like inside a car, you are not aware of the speed it is going.

www.starsoversomerset.com
Screenshots courtesy of Stellarium
Copyright Adrian Dening and Radio Ninesprings 2025

10/12/2025

Local News Wednesday 10th December

Avon and Somerset Police say 62 drivers were arrested for being over the alcohol limit or for drug driving in the first week of the Christmas drink and drug driving campaign. That’s a 31% increase in arrests compared to the same period last year. The public is being asked to help take dangerous drivers off the road. If you suspect someone is unfit to drive, you should call 999 or report the matter at a police station.

A reindeer farm near Yeovil says it may have to close after being told it needs a Zoo licence to keep operating. For the past 14 years, Sarah Sutton has run the Somerset Reindeer Ranch at Chilthorne Domer with an Animal Activity licence, but after reindeers were reclassified as "dangerous and wild" Somerset Council say she needs a Zoo licence to stay open. Sarah says a Zoo Licence is unaffordable and that she will have to close the business unless reindeer farms are exempt from the ruling. Somerset Reindeer Ranch in Chilthorne Domer is open over the Christmas and New Year period.

Young people with special educational needs and disabilities in Somerset now have their own website. Yeovil-based SEND group The Unstoppables has launched an online platform for members and others to share ideas and experiences.

Work restoring the old windows of the Grade II-listed water tower pumphouse at Crewkerne railway station has been completed. The project, carried out by the Friends of Crewkerne Station, was initially intended to cover the boarded side of the Pumphouse, but expanded into a complete restoration after it was discovered that the original window frames were still in place beneath.

Work restoring the old windows of the Grade II-listed water tower pumphouse at Crewkerne railway station has been completed. The project, carried out by the Friends of Crewkerne Station, was initially intended to cover the boarded side of the Pumphouse, but expanded into a complete restoration after it was discovered that the original window frames were still in place beneath the boarding.

09/12/2025

Local News Tuesday 9th December

The Labour Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset, Clare Moody, has criticised her own government for axing the role. The government claims the PCC role is a 'failed experiment'.

Police are appealing for witnesses to a road traffic accident near Ilminster in which a woman in her late 80s was seriously injured. It happened when two cars collided at Bay Hill, Whitelackington, at 3.30 pm last Friday. If you can help the police, call the non-emergency number 101.

Traffic management of this year’s Glastonbury Festival has been described as the "most successful to date". In a report, the Glastonbury Scrutiny Committee says careful planning by the Somerset Council's Traffic Management team, festival organisers, and contractors ensured the 210,000 visitors could access the site efficiently, with minimal disruption.

A man from Bruton who plays for the Man Versus Fat football team in Yeovil says he’s lost six stone since joining. George Reid joined the group last June and says his body weight has dropped by 35 per cent.

Residents of Freedom Avenue in Yeovil are raising funds for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance with a big display of Christmas lights. Each has decorated their houses with hundreds of coloured lights, as a symbol of community spirit and seasonal goodwill. People who visit Freedom Avenue to see the lights are being asked to donate to the Air Ambulance.

08/12/2025

Songs about sound, rhythm or music itself… GO! The People's Playlist on Radio Ninesprings