Welcome to Eye Matter Matters issue 29. This is a fortnightly publication where Eye Matter shares news and information about events and activities, members’ experiences and other items of interest. Unless otherwise indicated, all articles have been contributed by Fiona Musgrove. If you would like to contribute an article to a future edition, please contact Fiona at: fiona.musgrove@yahoo.co.uk
This edition includes:
Eye Matter Zoom events
- The Dutch House by Ann Patchett for our book worms next month- 6th August
- Creative writing – Friday 1st August at 11am.
Eye Matter Outings
- Audio described tour of London Zoo
- PGL Activity Holiday with Eye Matter
- Royal Collection Trust – Royal Mews
- Hyde Park Community Fun Run and Picnic
- An audio described performance of My Neighbour Totoro
Eye Matter’s volunteering opportunities
- Hyde Park Community Fun Run and Picnic
- Voiceover training
- Members Outreach Programme
Special Features
- Thank you for your support with our health and well-being campaign 2025.
- A new look at blindness.
- Did a blind man trump the President of the USA?
Eye Matter Zoom events
Keep up to date with our activities here.
Highlights include:
The Dutch House for our book worms next month- 6th August
July’s book is The Dutch House by Ann Patchett. The next bookworms is on Wednesday 6th August, hosted by Queen Sarah at 11am. Please read the book and join in the discussion then.
Creative writing – Friday 1st August at 11am.
Last month’s theme for our cathartic writing session was “hope”.
Thanks to the Ronson Foundation, we were able to engage Joanna Williams, a qualified counsellor and also a novelist (published under the name Joanna Barnard) to lead these sessions. She is very interested in the intersection between creative writing and mental health and has been facilitating writing for wellbeing classes for over seven years, as well as using therapeutic writing tools in her counselling practice.
Here are a few ideas for our next session:
- What brings you hope? Write a list.
- What is the most hopeful thing that happened to you in the last year?
- What would you like to achieve in the next year and why?
- Who do you know who inspires hope in others? Write about them.
- If hope were a living creature (animal or plant), what would it be?
- Write a letter of hopefulness to someone who might need it (this might be yourself)
- Write about how one or more of the pieces made you feel.
Remaining dates:
1st August, 12th September, 10th October, 7th November, 5th December, 2nd January 2026, 30thJanuary 2026
For more details or to join please email: suzie@eyematter.org.uk
Eye Matter Outings
Find all our events here
Highlights include:
Here are the outings and events available for Eye Matter members:
A2-hour audio described tour of London Zoo
- Wednesday 20th August
- Meet-and-greet at Baker Street Station at 10:00am
- Tickets are £5.50
- to support blind and partially sighted people to get up close and personal with their amazing animals
- Knowledgeable presenters will audio describe our group around the Zoo on a route that includes some tactile models of the animals and, when available, an animal experience.
After the tour, we will have a picnic, please bring your lunch.
a few extra rooms allocated for our amazing UK based activity holiday
- Where: PGL Holidays, Windmill Hill, Hailsham, East Sussex, BN27 4RZ.
- Getting there: Eye Matter’s chartered transport will take and return guests from London Kings Cross to PGL Windmill Hill.
- Price: The holiday is £366.50 per guest. This includes: three -night’s accommodation in twin ensuite rooms; all meals from arrival on Monday lunch until our departure after lunch on Thursday; all equipment, all activities supported by PGL instructors as well
We will be going to the hugely popular PGL Activity Centre which is located in 21 acres of glorious countryside on the Sussex Downs.
Our three-night multi activity holiday will offer everyone the opportunity to try exciting, accessible pursuits including Archery, Axe Throwing, Canoeing, Fencing, Abseiling, Aeroball, Rifle Shooting, Climbing, Disc Golf, Buggy Building, Giant Swing and Problem Solving. as evening entertainment including a quiz, a disco on our last night, and weather permitting, a pool party. Guests are welcome to bring extra treats and snacks. Over 18s may also bring alcohol, although there is also a bar and shop available on site.
Royal Collection Trust – Royal Mews
- Monday 1st September
- Meet and greet at 1:30pm Green Park station
- The Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace is responsible for all road travel arrangements for The King and members of the Royal Family, from horse-and-carriage to car and from livery to harness.
- See what goes on behind the scenes at a real working stables in the heart of London. As part of your visit, you’ll discover the iconic 260-year-old Gold State Coach used at State occasions such as the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, the Platinum Jubilee in 2022 and the Coronation of King Charles III in 2023.
Hyde Park Community Fun Run and Picnic
‘Let’s move together to support mental health in our community.’
- Saturday, 13th September 2025
- Hyde Park, London
- Starting at 11:00 AM
- Choose 1K or 5K distance
- Run, Walk, Wheel, or Dance – it’s up to you!
- Entry: £10 per person
- Optional Eye Matter T-shirts – £10 each (Available in Small, Medium, Large)
- Bring your family and friends to participate or cheer you on!
Eye Matter has been awarded a Mayor’s Community Weekend London 2025 Grant by the National Lottery Community Fund! To celebrate, we’re inviting you to take part in a fantastic community day of movement, fun and connection. After the challenge join us for a community picnic in the park – bring your own lunch or snacks and enjoy the day with fellow participants! We’ll be providing water and fruit to keep everyone refreshed!
Get Sponsored!
Help raise funds for mental health support at Eye Matter by getting sponsored for your challenge. Every step you take makes a difference. Once registered you will receive a link to our exclusive Just Giving page for this challenge to share on your networks – please send us photos of your training preparations and images from the event.
An audio described performance of My Neighbour Totoro
- At the Gillian Lynne Theatre
- On Saturday 11th October
- Meet and greet at Tottenham Court Road Station at 11:40am
- Touch tour 12pm
- Tickets are £25
- Please bring a picnic to have after the touch tour, before the performance
This “utterly beguiling” and “jaw-dropping” staging of the celebrated 1988 animated feature film is brought to you by the Royal Shakespeare Company and Executive Producer Joe Hisaishi and adapted by Tom Morton-Smith.
Hailed as “a tender and remarkably beautiful show”. My Neighbour Totoro is an enchanting coming-of-age story exploring the magical fantasy world of childhood and the transformative power of imagination, as it follows one extraordinary summer in the lives of sisters Satsuki and Mei.
- Run time: Approx. 2 hours 30 minutes, including a 20-minute interval
- CONTENT WARNING: This production contains live music, some loud noises, some scenes are set in a hospital with a sick parent and some very large puppets. There are pyrotechnics, smoke, and haze.
To book any Eye Matter outings please email suzie@eyematter.org.uk stating clearly which event and how many tickets you require.
Eye Matter’s volunteering opportunities
- Eye Matter encourages peer support amongst its members.
- No experience is necessary
- Provides work experience within a safe environment.
- All work is done through Zoom or on a phone (unless stated otherwise).
- You will learn to work both independently and as part of a team.
- These roles are for anyone who wants to support others or upskill for future employment opportunities
- Training is provided
Hyde Park Community Fun Run and Picnic
- Guide runners, stewards and first aiders.
Join us for a community picnic in the park – bring your own lunch or snacks and enjoy the day with fellow participants! We’ll be providing water and fruit to keep everyone refreshed!
- Saturday, 13th September 2025
- Hyde Park, London
- Starting at 11:00 AM
Voiceover training
- Required participation of six (one hour) sessions over six weeks.
- An alternative number is required (preferably a land line).
Click here to read the testimonials of members who have benefitted from this project.
Members Outreach Programme
- coordinated by Eye Matter’s member liaison officer, the wonderful volunteer Irena Valchera.
- This role includes assisting Irena to reach out to our ever-growing membership.
- Check on their wellbeing, confirm their continued interest in membership, and ensure that they are able to join our Zoom sessions.
- Minimum commitment of one call per week.
If you are interested in any of these opportunities, please email suzie@eyematter.org.uk
Special features
Thank you for your support with our health and well-being campaign 2025.
Over £2300 raised to support your mental health provisions.
https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/eyemattermentalhealthprovision
Your funding will enable delivery of twice a month on-line therapy sessions and three in-person sessions with our regular therapist Jo Williams. In addition, it will provide members with an external source of support through our regular mental health blog.
A new look at blindness.
Over the next few months Blind Lives will be sharing stories about the impact blind people have had on our past. How their influence can still be seen making a difference today in demonstrating that blindness wasn’t an obstacle in their Blind Lives.
In the first series we will examine a road builder, a magistrate and the founder of Thomas Pocklington Trust. Their lives and stories provide an insight into the perception of blindness and hopefully, will encourage us to overcome our own obstacles.
Click here to join the group ‘Blind Lives ‘and learn more about these influential members of the VI community.
Did a blind man trump the President of the USA?
In a truly remarkable interview, the BBC’s Chief North America Correspondent Gary O’Donoghue explains his reaction to been awoken by Donald Trump for an interview. Despite losing his sight completely at the age of eight due to a medical mishap during eye surgery Gary has been involved in journalism for over twenty years and has been with the BBC since the early 1990s. He has covered major events worldwide including the Presidents assassination attempt in 2024.