The Origin of the WoW
What’s On in Woodford (“The WOW”) has been published 10 times a year since November 2017.
There was a gap in publication with the 154th edition in December 2016 / January 2017, before being resurrected later that year.
Here is a look back at the WOW and its predecessors.
The Woodford Express
Here is the cover of issue 9 of the Woodford Express from June 1977, a Silver Jubilee edition. It’s sixteen typewritten (yes, these were the days before home computers) pages are filled with the preparations for the celebrations of 25 years since the Queen’s Coronation. How many people then would have thought that she would still be on the throne in 2022, 45 years later?
Then Clerk of the Parish Council and local historian, Jim Anscomb contributed an article on Woodford cum Membris in 1952.
There was news that a lease had finally been agreed to allow the village to take over “The Village Centre” (the Hinton and Dryden Rooms and the Library) and the dedication of the restored bells of St Mary’s Church, together with the arrangements for a village-wide party for the Jubilee celebrations.
Finally, there was a list of local shops and businesses.
The Quarterly
The immediate precursor of the WOW was the Woodford Quarterly which was a communuity magazine produced by St Mary’s Church, running for fourty issues between 1991 and 2001. This carried church news and a direectory of local businesses, services and clubs.
By the summer of 2001 though, the Quarterly was galloping off into the distance with its final edition as its place was taken by What’s On in Woodford.
The WoW
The WOW was created to cope with the need for a more frequent newsletter and first appeared in September 2001, published by the Parish Council.
Issue 1 Number 1 was a very simple one side of A4 in black and white but it featured the directory that was always a key part of the publication.
WOW went on to appear regularly 10 times a year, delivered free to every household in Woodford, Hinton and West Farndon.
It first appeared online in February 2013 (by then on four pages in three colours, typeset and with pictures) and all the editions of WOW since then are still available here.
(Thanks to Gill Pitt for the copies of Woodford Express, Woodford Quarterly & WOW #1 )