My son and I spent a wonderful day last week visiting an ancient church at Warnford, Hampshire. As it is situated in the privately owned Warnford Park, it is open on Sundays for church services; otherwise, special permission is needed to visit it. The person to whom I spoke asked my name and, when I told him, he was thrilled and said he had read all four of my books! Result—instant permission to visit! As the crop circle phenomenon is such a controversial subject, the result might easily have gone the other way!

To have the church and ruins to ourselves was very special. It was a glorious early summer’s day, and our whole beings were filled with the peace and serenity surrounding us—so far from the bustle of everyday life.

Dating mainly from the 1190s, Warnford Church, the Church of Our Lady, has an earlier tower and Saxon roots. The first church on the site may have been built by St Wilfrid in the 680s. It is known locally as the "Snowdrop Church" due to the abundance of snowdrops that blanket the grounds in spring.

“The Snowdrop Church”

“Deep in the woodlands of the Meon Valley, the Church of Our Lady of Warnford stands in peaceful isolation. This is hallowed ground where God has been worshipped continuously for thirteen hundred years. The church serves a scattered parish of farms and cottages, for there is no real village centre of Warnford.”

We are also told:

“A single-vessel church with no architectural division between nave and chancel, but with a wide span. Assertive west tower with big Romanesque strip-buttresses on the corners, of three stories, with Romanesque round-headed windows in the top two stages, and two circular windows at the top of the third stage. No sculpture on the tower except roll mouldings between the stories and around the windows. (The east face of the tower and the whole parapet is of brick, with an attractively cogged lower frieze.) Two inscriptions help date the fabric of the building and are likely also Romanesque in themselves. The font is also of the 12th century, but heavily mutilated.”

“Two ancient stone tablets, written in Latin, lay claim to the founding of this church by Wilfrid during his time in the Meon Valley. The people of Warnford believe that Wilfrid made his headquarters here, although the source of the claim has not been found. In any case, Adam de Port, the Lord of the Manor who lived in Warnford 500 years after Wilfrid, respected the link with the saint and rebuilt the church in stone in 1190.”

‘The Meonwara—a tribe of Anglo-Saxon Britain—had probably chosen this site, a clearing in the woods beside the River Meon. It’s easy to imagine their settlement today. However, these grounds have undergone substantial changes over the centuries. Don’t miss the ruins of St John’s House, behind the church, built in 1210 by the St John family, who had married into the de Ports. This is a very rare example of a 13th-century hall, unique in the south of England and described in the church leaflet.

The flat ground to the left of the bridge as you approach was the site of an Elizabethan mansion built to replace the old hall, which first became a barn and then a ‘scenic ruin’ when the estate was landscaped by Capability Brown around 1760. At this time, the Meon was expanded into the lake we can see today, and the old riverside road from Alton to Gosport was diverted to the line of the present A32.’

Pilgrim’s Prayer Panel

“Adam de Port built this church and left these inscriptions:

‘Brethren, bless in your prayers the founders young and old of this temple; Wulfric who founded it; good Adam restored it’ (porch).

‘May the race signed with the Cross (i.e. Christians) from the rising of the sun bless Adam de Port by whom I have been thus restored’ (north wall - outside).”

It was difficult to tear ourselves away for the booking we had made at The Shoe Inn nearby. Close it may have been, but we got thoroughly lost! However, driving down the ancient, narrow drovers’ lanes with their high banks on either side was a joy in itself.

Eventually, we arrived at our destination and had an excellent lunch, finishing by taking our coffee outside to sit overlooking the River Meon. Brown trout were swimming lazily among the floating reeds as the river idled along. The River Meon is one of our special and unique chalk rivers, which has the rare quality of maintaining a temperature of 57 degrees, summer and winter, regardless of the weather. The name “Meon” is thought to be of Celtic origin, potentially linked to the meaning “swift.”

New Circles

Moving on from the past to the present, we have had an interesting circle appear at The Gallops, near Sutton Veny, Wiltshire. Let us hope that 2025 may be a year to be remembered for the number and design—designs that will teach us more about ourselves and the world in which we live.

STOP PRESS…

Culliford Tree Barrow, Dorset 19 May 2025 © Billy Breen.

c. 150feet (46m) over all. Barley

My tour on the 24th July has been fully booked. If you would like to be contacted in the event of a cancellation, please contact Lucy  and ask to be added to her list.

There are still a few spaces places for the tour on the 31st July with the optional extra of flying over the crop circles and the ancient sacred landscape including the historic Avebury Stone Complex and Silbury Hill.

On 8th May, many countries in the Western world will be celebrating the 80th anniversary of VE Day—Victory in Europe. The surrender came into force at 23:01 that day in 1945.

However, despite the conflict being over in Europe, the war continued to wage in the Far East and Pacific, with many troops redeployed to fight in the East instead of coming home. The end of the war in Japan came a few months later, in August, after atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

On Thursday, 8th May, at 12:19, a procession of about 1,000 UK service personnel from the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines, the British Army and the Royal Air Force will start at Parliament Square, finishing at the Queen Victoria Memorial. This will be followed by a flypast featuring the Red Arrows and 23 current and historic aircraft over The Mall and Buckingham Palace at 13:45.

Ukrainian troops from war-torn Ukraine will also be taking part in the UK's military procession. Major Pavlo, an officer of the Ukrainian marching contingent, said: 'The participation of Ukrainian service personnel in the VE Day parade in London symbolises our strength, courage and resilience. It is a recognition that Ukraine and its heroes stand at the forefront of the fight for freedom and peace in the world.

There will also be a church service to mark VE Day. A special service of thanksgiving is planned for Thursday, 8th May, at Westminster Abbey, with the King and Queen in attendance.

It will be a service of thankfulness and commemoration for the thousands of men and women who fought and gave their lives fighting for the freedom we experience today— children and civilians who got caught up in the theatre of war. Nor must we forget the many horses, the dogs that carried messages, and the carrier pigeons who performed selfless acts of immense courage and bravery.

A moment to reflect and give thanks for the peace that so many sacrificed their lives for during the Second World War.

In addition, churches across the country will also be holding services to mark the occasion, and many will ring their bells at 6:30 pm on 8th May.

On the day the war officially ended in 1945, the country erupted in a euphoric celebration. Spontaneous street parties broke out across the land, with dancing and singing that carried on through the night and into the following morning. Even Princess Elizabeth—our late Queen Elizabeth II—and Princess Margaret slipped out to join the jubilant crowds gathered along The Mall outside Buckingham Palace.

It marked the end of years of hardship. Every evening, blackout curtains were drawn tight, and the rules were so strict that if even the smallest chink of light escaped, a knock at the door would follow with a stern reminder to take more care. Food and basic goods were scarce. In sharp contrast to today's throwaway culture, people saved every scrap of string and wore their shoes until they nearly fell apart. Rationing was imposed on almost everything—food, clothing, fabrics—with some households receiving no more than one egg a week.

So when peace was finally declared, the sense of relief and joy was overwhelming—and most symbolic of all, the lights came on again.

Yet despite the war’s end, rationing lingered for nearly a decade. Restrictions continued on various items, and it wasn’t until midnight on 4th July 1954 that rationing in the UK officially ended. Meat was the final item to be de-rationed, bringing to a close 14 years of careful counting and constrained living.

The Tower of London is hosting a display of 30,000 ceramic red poppies in recognition of all those who fell during World War II. The poppy has long represented peace and sacrifice.

The Tower has had a long, varied and fascinating history - from serving as a royal residence to being the first London zoo - but it is most commonly known as a prison where many beheadings took place. Initially parts of the Tower of London (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_of_London) - including The White Tower — were built in 1087, but the building as a whole was begun in late 1066.

We are told that “…the Tower of London will be illuminated as part of a special remembrance display called 'Poppy Fields at the Tower'. This sound and light installation, running from 8th to 16th November 2024, will feature moving images reflecting on World War One and Two. The display will include falling poppy petals, silhouettes of soldiers, and images from the Tower's archives.”

Turning to other matters, a circle in oilseed rape was found at Wimborne Minster, near Poole, Dorset. Reported 11th April 2025.

Photo: Crop Circle Access/Geometry, Circles and Landart

Whilst many people will have been enjoying the sun over recent days and weeks, the farmers have said the dry weather is affecting their crops. The Berkshire Post reported:

“The lack of recent rainfall has meant some crops are not sprouting in drier ground, and there is no forecasted rain in some areas for several days. For Colin Rayner, from Stubbings Farm in Maidenhead, spring barley planted weeks ago has 'hardly germinated', which has left him hoping for rain at the weekend.

An expert from the University of Reading said the seasonal weather patterns on which farmers rely 'have clearly changed a lot' over recent years.

'We had a very wet winter,' Mr Rayner told BBC Radio Berkshire. 'I think we had 90 days of rain virtually from November to the end of February. At the end of February, it decided to stop raining.”

Let us hope that the situation changes and provides the farmers with sufficient rain to grow their crops without any more worry.

I am a great optimist, and the rains will come.

Where Has the Time Gone?

I realise with horror that I have not written to you for so long—not since the end of February. The truth is that nothing new of great interest has happened. It seems at times as though the world as we once knew it is reshaping itself. It is a time when the best course of action seems to be that of an observer, keeping one's own values rather than getting caught up in the maelstrom all around.

I have just been walking around my garden, and the growth of everything seems to be an example of how to continue thriving and not be drawn into something beyond our control; nature is showing us the way forward.

Regarding time, we are often told to be in the present. In fact, Eleanor Roosevelt wrote:

“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift. That is why they call it the present.”

However, the Mayans have a completely different concept of time. Their fascinating belief is that there is no such thing as the present—it simply does not exist. They recognise the past, which is in front of them, because they know all about it and can thus see it. The future is behind them because they cannot see it. It is still to come, and they don’t know what it will bring. Once the future arrives, they know about it, and then they can see it—it is before them and immediately becomes the past.

It brings us to the realisation that as a human race, we may all see things in different ways. What may be right for one person does not necessarily hold true for another.

I came across several inspirational quotations:

“But let there be spaces in your togetherness and let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.”
— Khalil Gibran

Desmond Tutu, the South African Anglican cleric who in 1984 received the Nobel Prize for Peace for his role in the opposition to apartheid, wrote:

“God's dream is that you and I and all of us will realise that we are family, that we are made for togetherness, for goodness, and for compassion.”
— Desmond Tutu

He also said:

“If you want peace, you don't talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies.”
— Desmond Tutu

We have been having quite exceptionally warm weather, and the spring flowers are bursting into bloom. The snowdrops and primroses are giving way to azaleas. (I have one in my garden that was here when I moved in over 30 years ago. Each year, I wonder if it will survive the winter, and yet again this spring, its buds are about to burst into flower.)

Also, the Amelanchier lamarckii has almost overnight turned into a sea of blossoms. How blessed we are.

I have just read that Michael Morpurgo—author of some truly special books—has a new release. He is high on my list of favourite authors. He has a way with words that few authors possess. A couple of his books, War Horse and Private Peaceful, are written with such sensitivity; his words pierced my heart.

The reason for mentioning him now is that his latest book, Spring, has just been released—appropriately enough, at this time of year—and I cannot wait to read it.

However, as you can imagine, this warm weather is not for everyone. The poor farmers are tearing their hair out, as spring is the time when crops such as barley and early wheat should be well established. At the moment, they are barely a few inches high—not yet enough to leave anything beyond a temporary imprint. This is the crucial growing period of the year.

We are told that insufficient rainfall directly affects soil moisture levels, leading to stunted growth and lower crop yields. Many crops require a specific amount of water to thrive, and without adequate rainfall, they may fail to mature. But don’t despair crop circle lovers as nature has a way of healing itself and soon the fields may be rippling with lush growth. I have seen this happen before.

However, to add to the farmers’ concerns, for the first time, inheritance tax is being levied against those whose estates—when they die—are valued above a certain threshold. Given that the value of agricultural land has risen considerably, many farmers—already struggling—may no longer be able to pass their farms on to the next generation. Instead, they may have to sell the land in order to pay the inheritance tax. Many have worked the same land for several hundred years, passing it down through generations.

Maybe this is a good moment to say how grateful we are to the farmers who allow us onto their land to enter the crop circles. Although it may seem hard, we need to understand that it is their land and livelihood. Sadly, many times people have damaged crops, and it is for that reason that some farmers have closed their fields to visitors.

Crop Circle Tours

Please remember to book your place/s; as already mentioned this probably the last year I will be taking will be taking the tours. Sadly I only have a limited number of places available. I have met so many wonderful people for all over the world; it been such a pleasure and privilege for me.

Oliver’s Castle, Nr Devizes, Wiltshire. 15 April 2007

For quite some time, I have felt as though the Universe has sped up quite noticeably and that we are being swept along as though we are being tossed around in a tumble dryer. Sudden, unexpected events—globally as well as personally—are taking us by surprise, knocking us back. There comes a point when this has to stop for our own well-being and to deal with our daily obligations. So how do we set about it?

On a global level, when we realize that we are not really part of it personally but just an observer, we can begin to readjust ourselves and start to concentrate on our own lives and the lives and needs of other people. In a word, distance yourself, and if you can, move forward projecting normalcy, calm, and positivity. More and more people now refuse to read a newspaper or listen to the news. We cannot ignore it completely, nor should we. Burying our heads in the sand does not help anyone.

However, on a personal level, this is not so easy, but at such times, we may not realize that help is often at hand—and from unexpected quarters. The rest of the world has not stopped; it is continuing with its daily tasks, and we too can play our individual, useful parts in so many different ways. I am a great optimist. I feel, in a way, that I am on an obstacle course and have to experience all sorts of difficulties before I reach the finish. Try not to lose heart on the way, and indeed, help can appear out of the blue and in so many different and unexpected ways.

The Seven-Planet Alignment
I am showing you various images of this unique planetary alignment below. As we focus on this event, our minds are set in motion to consider further implications.

Not one, not two, but seven planets are due to line up in the night sky later this week in a relatively rare planetary parade—for the last time until 2040—with some of the planets visible to the naked eye.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-14437797/Rare-planetary-parade-night-sky.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-14437797/Rare-planetary-parade-night-sky.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-14437797/Rare-planetary-parade-night-sky.html
I asked David Olliff, a friend and polymath, to express this remarkable event in his own terms; he kindly sent me the following:

“I have enjoyed some backyard astronomy over the years, so it was intriguing to see the seven-planet alignment this week. Mercury will join Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune in splendid alignment on February 28th, something that won’t happen again until 2040. It’s easy to forget, of course, that there is one more planet that must be part of this alignment if it is going to mean anything from our point of view: our own planet, Earth.

“However well-versed we are in Copernican cosmology, we still have a tendency to see our own position as the center of everything, as though we are a fixed point and everything revolves around us. It’s natural, of course, and not something to feel bad about. Our solar system isn’t geocentric, no matter how much it seems that way; our lives are not egocentric, no matter how much we would like them to be.

“An alignment like this is a matter of profound beauty. Planets, silently tracing their course through space—they do not, it turns out, move through nothing. There is no ‘nothing.’ Instead, they move through darkness without form, sailing perhaps as gentle ships through a sea that knows nothing of waves. When we sense such profound beauty, it often comes to us with that feeling I think of as ‘the trace.’ It is that remnant, that moment when all that may be said is silent, that sense that the universe is trying to tell us something.

“All that the trace can say is that there is something yet unsaid. All that the trace can show is that the trace is there to be found. How then should we respond to the sacred trace at times of wonder like these?

“Sense the trace and feel it through your whole self. Take the time to notice it. Remember it. Let the trace radiate and amplify within and through you. It is possible not just to witness the sacred trace in the beauty of things in the world around you; you are not a fixed point witnessing a world arrange itself before you. You are not merely in this universe or of this universe—you are this universe. You need not quest for the trace if you choose to live as and be the trace. In this way, when the planets align themselves, you may place yourself in alignment with the planets.”

We are at the beginning of March, and the shackles of winter have officially fallen away as we enter meteorological spring! What a gloriously liberating feeling. Begone, icy fingers of winter!

In the UK, the fields are still brown, with few signs of green appearing as yet. However, as we have been blessed with several days of hot sun, this all may change in the blink of an eye—so remains the same question we always ask: What does this year hold for us? Will there be early delights, heralds of more wonders to come? Who knows?!

Oliver’s Castle, near Devizes, Wiltshire. 15 April 2007