Watches of Switzerland

Watches of Switzerland is a British retailer of watches. The company headquarters is in Braunstone, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.

Watches of Switzerland was founded in Ludgate Hill in 1924. During the late 1970s Theo Paphitis, the entrepreneur, worked as a sales assistant at the Bond Street Watches of Switzerland store in London.

The business was acquired by Ratners in 1988 and then sold on to Asprey in 1992. In December 1998, Mappin & Webb managing director, Judith Pilkington, acquired Watches of Switzerland from Asprey, together with Mappin & Webb.  Both companies were acquired by Bauger Group in November 2005. Baugur grouped both companies with fellow British jeweller Goldsmiths under the Aurum Group.

Baugur became insolvent in 2010 and the group was under the control of Landsbanki before coming under the control of Apollo Global Management in 2013. The group was briefly known as Aurum Holdings before re-branding itself as Watches of Switzerland Group in advance of an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange in May 2019.

The company operates 221 stores in the UK, US and Europe, spread across the Watches of Switzerland, Mappin & Webb, Goldsmiths, Mayors and Betteridge brands. This includes 96 dedicated mono-brand boutiques in partnership with Rolex, Omega, TAG Heuer, Breitling, Tudor, Audemars Piguet, Sieko, Bulgari and Fope.

https://www.watches-of-switzerland.co.uk/

Alex Fox

Valentine's Disco

These are photographs of residents of Camphill Milton Keynes going to a Valentine Disco at the Chrysalis Theatre.
Why do we celebrate Valentine's Day?
It originated as a Christian feast day honouring a martyr named Valentine and through later folk traditions, it has also become a significant cultural, religious and commercial celebration of romance and love in many regions of the world.

Alex Fox

Valentine's Bake-Off

Congratulations to Camphill Milton Keynes bakers! Each houses got baking with aplomb for a Camphill Bake-Off inspired by Valentine’s Day.
Each house made its unique sweet treats, and our four-member committee had quite a difficult task judging all the cakes for appearance and taste. They awarded points to each, and in the end, it turned out that the cake and brownie surprise from Blackthorn scored the highest points!

Alex Fox

Candlemas

Candlemas is a Christian holiday that takes place on February 2nd. It celebrates the presentation of Jesus at the Temple and the purification of Mary after giving birth. It's also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ.

What does Candlemas celebrate?

• The presentation of Jesus to God in the Temple by Mary and Joseph
• The purification of Mary 40 days after Jesus' birth

Alex Fox

National Story Telling Week

National Storytelling Week is a yearly celebration of the power of storytelling. It's a time to encourage the sharing of stories across generations.

What's the purpose of National Storytelling Week? 

• To celebrate the art of storytelling
• To encourage people to tell their own stories
• To foster a love for literature and the spoken word
• To help develop essential literacy skills
• To help people's imaginations grow
• To teach people lessons

Alex Fox

Setsubun (Bean Throwing) Ceremony

On Sunday 2nd February, there was Setsubun, the Bean Throwing Ceremony at the Buddhist Temple in Willen.
Setsubun is the day before the beginning of spring in Japan. The name means ‘seasonal’ division, but usually the term refers to the spring Setsubun, properly called ‘Risshun’ celebrated on February 3^rd as part of the Spring.
There were prayers for about an hour then there was a special ritual to cleanse away all the evil of the last year and drive away disease-bringing evil spirits for the year to come. We performed this ritual by throwing lots of beans into the air in a darkened room (also saying loudly 'Bad spirits out, Good spirits in 'to rid us of any evil spirits) and then picking them up afterwards and putting them into paper bags with some sweets that had also been thrown into the air.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mkbuddhism

Alex Fox

Football

Football is a team sport where two teams compete to score goals by kicking a ball into the other team's net. It's also known as association football or soccer. 

How it's played

• Two teams of 11 players compete on a rectangular field 
• Players try to score by kicking the ball into the other team's goal without using their hands or arms
• Players tackle and battle to get the ball from the opposing team
• The team with the most goals at the end of the game wins

https://www.mkdons.com/

Alex Fox