Some of the news from Beer and Branscombe between July and December.

July

Hollywood came to Beer Social Club for the ‘world premiere’ of a short film.

It was made by octogenarian actors and amateur thespians, called The (In)Famous Five.

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South West in Bloom judges visited Beer in the middle of a deluge to mark the village for the award.

The bar was set high in 2010 when the village received a Gold Award, and the judges said they had a ‘fantastic welcome’.

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Floods which ‘cut Branscombe in half’ prompted a massive clean-up operation to repair the �10,000 worth of damage.

Exceptionally heavy rain caused havoc across the area at the start of the month.

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The nail-biting climax of the Beer Annual Duck Race – the highlight of the village’s lifeboat week – drew crowds from as far afield as Scotland.

It raised almost half of the �1,400 raised during the week.

Tributes were paid to “one of the original Branscombe people” who died aged 85, after spending her most of her life in the village.

Rene (Irene Pamela) Croft moved in when she was two.

August

Beer Scouts made the pilgrimage to Denmark for one of the world’s biggest ever jamborees, where they sowed the seeds of a lifelong friendship.

Explorers aged 14 to 18 from all over Devon joined 35,000 other scouts for a week-long camp in the north west of the country.

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Boaters in Beer brought back the much-loved raft race and appealed for residents help to make their club’s centenary in 2013 ‘extra special’.

The regatta week also included a family fun day, two days of sailing and pavement art.

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Bosses at Beer Social Club hailed the opened of a third skittle alley as the dawn of a new era.

Teams had been queuing up to join, and the expansion was made possible by the generosity of local people donating their time and goods for free.

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A globetrotter who returned home to Beer after years in South America gave a sell-out talk that reduced her old teachers to tears.

Sally Dodge, 29, had been teaching English and leading tours all over Latin America, and gave her inspiring speech as part of the Beer Regatta.

September

Pensioners in Beer gave a conservative, British take on the summer’s raunchy bestseller, Fifty Shades of Grey, when they filmed their own version.

The 90-second clip, Fifty Shades of Earl Grey was a parody made by a crew of over-60s from Bus Pass Productions.

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The RNLI in Beer thanked residents for their fundraising efforts that got �1,500 for the charity.

Volunteers braved torrential rain in July ahead of the duck race, which brought in much-needed contributions.

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A burst pipe almost brought things splashing to halt before an open day at Beer’s youth hostel.

New manager Mike Ruiter’s plans took a more restricted form, but still brought in a good number of people, none of whom had visited before.

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Archaeologists in Branscombe found they had some digging to do to uncover the truth behind an intriguing mystery.

The team behind the Church Project discovered a gravestone they believe was dragged from a shipwreck somewhere on the Jurassic Coast to St Winifred’s.

October

A month’s worth of rain undid the repair work from July’s flooding in Branscombe, but National Trust members and volunteers got straight back to work.

The organisation tried to prevent it happening again as a continued commitment to the community.

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Children from Devon celebrated the launch of a federation between two schools at a team-building day at Bicton College.

Branscombe and Broadhembury primary school pupils united for a day of climbing, canoeing, orienteering and archery as they got to know one another.

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A Branscombe woman’s seven-decade relationship with a department store led her to cut the ribbon at a massive new branch in Exeter.

John Lewis bosses invited Joan Monaghan to the grand opening after she told them of her times working at the shop in the 1940s and 1950s.

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A Ugandan performer brought his country’s traditional music to Branscombe to raise money for children in his home village.

Multi-instrumentalist Pedson Kasume was working with a Devon charity to build a �60,000 orphanage in Bwera.

November

Branscombe forge’s blacksmith built up an impressive portfolio of pieces to win over judges and take a bronze award from his craft’s national guild.

Andy Hall received the accolade from the Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths and soon set his sight on the silver award.

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A unique flower show was the last event before the Beer Horticultural Society’s secretary stepped down.

Retiree Pete Spencer said he was ready to put his feet up after the charm show, a display of specially-grown chrysanthemums.

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Figures revealed drivers in Beer were disproportionately targeted by parking wardens, receiving as many tickets as there were residents.

A Freedom of Information request by the Herald found that cars parked in the village received more penalties than the much larger Ottery St Mary.

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Emergency water repair work wreaked havoc in Branscombe and left residents trapped in their houses.

Unmarked roadworks sent drivers on vague diversions around the village and prevented some from voting in the Police and Crime Commissioner election.

December

A Branscombe man was on cloud nine after the launch of his new business – and his first jet’s safe touch-down.

David Hayman’s company, Aeris Aviation, was granted the sole rights to sell the Total Eclipse in Europe, and they will be flown out of Dunkeswell.

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A scheme to make house prices in Beer more affordable for the benefit of the residents looks set to go ahead.

Parish and East Devon district councillor (EDDC) Geoff Pook was spearheading a project to establish a Community Land Trust (CLT), which would give some control over property costs in the village to the village.

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Pedestrians were risking their lives to save time getting from Beer to Seaton on a water-damaged road as civic leaders searched for a solution.

Some walkers were breaking through barriers that block off an eight-foot chasm in Old Beer Road, while others were hiking beside a busy main road, or not making the journey at all.

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Branscombe residents made a big festive push to raise �890 at their Christmas fair.

Stalls were set up in aid of the venue, Branoc Hall.