AT Clent History society's next open meeting on Wednesday, November 10, the distinguished and entertaining Birmingham historian Ken Hughes will be talking about "Sauce, Tea and Custard". You may already realise that the subjects of this illustrated talk are the three Birmingham firms: HP Sauce, Typhoo Tea and Bird's Custard. Only the HP factory remains in Birmingham, more than 100 years after it began making sauce.

Did you, like me, receive your first French lesson at the breakfast table? Are the words still on the bottle? If not, do you know where they have gone? Ken has the answers to these and many other questions about the whys and wherefores of sauce, tea and custard - products we take so much for granted.

Our meeting begins at 8pm in the parish hall in Church Avenue, Clent. The admission cost is £1.50 and that includes a cup of tea of coffee, biscuits and good, cheerful company!