Author: Andrew

Cat Links Family, Weddings

Kate and Rob

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This post is a special one for me – the wedding of my sister and brother in law to be, Kate and Rob. Since I met Clare, both Kate and Rob have always made me feel like a part of the family. And when they announced their engagement last Christmas, I was excited at the prospect of having my first big family wedding!

I spent the morning with Clare, who had been with her sisters (Kate and Hannah) at her mums since the night before. When I showed up at 9am, Dave and Paul were out front preparing the VW Beetle ready to take Kate to the church. Kate arrived back from the hair dressers and the girls got ready for the big day – I, of course, spent the morning behind the camera… … Continue readingKate and Rob

Cat Links Weddings

Amy & Tony

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Our very good friends, Amy and Tony – aka, the Jackalloys! Got hitched at the beginning of the month. Clare and I set off early Saturday morning for Stratford and found our good friend Locky in the pub, so we joined him for a Gin (or two..) before heading onto the church for some pre-wedding singing rehearsals.

The wedding was beautiful from start to finish. The happy couple had added lots of personal touches to the church and reception venue, which really made the day for us… … Continue readingAmy & Tony

Cat Links Weddings

Fran and James

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Last weekend Clare and I went to Morton In Marsh for our friends wedding, Fran and James. Apart from Fran’s Hen weekend where the girls went to Liverpool, we hadn’t seen each other since September! Since then, Claire and Tim have had a gorgeous little girl – Isobel and it was already her second wedding this year!

As soon as Fran appeared and walked down the isle with her father, the girls started to well up. It was a very moving ceremony, with a lovely reading by Fran’s father… … Continue readingFran and James

Cat Links Weddings

Chilina and James

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We’re back from our first wedding of the year, the wedding of Chilina and James in Sorrento, Italy!

Clare and I flew out on the Friday and met up with our friends, most of whom had flown out the day before and were already on the sea front. We spent the afternoon having a lazy lunch and several beers, before heading back to the hotel to meet the others and venture out for dinner… … Continue readingChilina and James

Cat Links Flight Simulation

British Airways B777-200 Training Simulator

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This week, Gary asked if I wanted to accompany him to the British Airways Training Centre at Cranebank, near London Heathrow. Obviously, I jumped at the chance to spend three hours in a Level-D full motion, ten million pound flight simulator!

We arrived an hour before and met our supervisor, who was currently on maternity leave from flying the A320 – a couple of times a week she helps out at the school for external visits such as this. She soon established that Gary and I probably knew more about the Tripple Seven than she did and that it was probably best just to let us go flying… … Continue readingBritish Airways B777-200 Training Simulator

Cat Links Theatre

The Mikado

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This May the Oxford Operatic Society staged The Mikado at the Oxford Playhouse. I had been asked to take some photos of the rehearsals earlier in the year, and wanted to accompany the show’s official photographer and friend of mine, Ian Bateman, to the dress rehearsal. It still amazes me how the show comes together on-stage having only rehearsed in various halls for the past four months… … Continue readingThe Mikado

Cat Links Family

Dorchester-on-Thames

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On Bank Holiday Monday, Clare and I headed out to Day’s Lock, near Dorchester-On-Thames for a few hours in the afternoon. The Lock lies to the north-east of the small village Little Wittenham on the River Thames, and just north of the Wittenham Clumps. The Lock was built here in 1789 and is the main gauging station for the measurement of water flow in the River Thames. Every year, it hosts the World Championship Poohsticks competition on behalf of the RNLI – this year won by a local nine year old girl… … Continue readingDorchester-on-Thames

Cat Links Wildlife

Swans on the Thames

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After missing some photo opportunities on our visit to the river Thames last weekend, Clare and I cycled down again this Sunday to get some photos of the swans that gather on the river and in the fields around. There are around thirty swans and signets that gather on this stretch of the river, that appear to spend their day between the river and a crop field a few hundred yards back from the river bank. … … Continue readingSwans on the Thames

Cat Links Family

A Sunny Sunday

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I’m pretty sure that this time last year everyone still had their central heating turned up, and we were all riding out another wet April here in the UK. This year, things changed – and with a week of hot weather forecast, it felt like everyone headed out to make the most of a weekend in the sun… … Continue readingA Sunny Sunday

Cat Links Family

Henry

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Sadly, we lost one of our cats, Henry, last month. Henry was one of two cats that we had, and was approaching seven years old this spring. He fell ill not long ago and spent several weeks at the vets whilst trying to diagnose his illness. Unfortunately, Henry tested positive for Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) after a biopsy on tissue from his abdomen. The vet suggested that we keep Henry at home and make him comfortable for the few days he had left… … Continue readingHenry

Cat Links Weddings

Sarah & Steve

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Last September, Clare and I were invited to Sarah and Steve’s wedding in Surrey. They had a lovely church ceremony where Clare was asked to do a reading, before we all headed off to the reception, not far from Dorking. It was a great day, and a perfect opportunity to get to know Clare’s girl friends from uni and their partners a little better. We’d only had a couple of nights out together as a group in Oxford and Brighton that year, so there was lots to catch up on – especially as Fran… … Continue readingSarah & Steve

Cat Links Weddings

Andy & Ali

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On the evening of Saturday 18th December, Clare and I braved the snow and ventured out to the evening reception of Andy and Ali’s wedding – with boots, snow shovel and sleeping bags packed in the car, just in case!

We were fortunate enough to only live a couple of miles away from the venue. Other guests who were further away suffered long delays, as most of the surrounding roads were impassable or blocked. Some had no option but to turn back, and whilst I’m sure they were sorely missed that day by Andy and Ali, they had a beautiful wedding in the snow… … Continue readingAndy & Ali