We awoke to snow on the morning of Tuesday 16 January, the day of our 2024 New Year lunch. As a result, a few of our more remote members were unable to come. 

However those of us who did make it, were rewarded with an excellent three-course lunch, beautifully presented, at The Cottons.  After rather elegant starters, our main courses were braised beef, roasted salmon or butternut squash risotto. There was an excellent cheese selection for those that way inclined, but who could resist the sticky toffeee pudding, the citrus tart or the chocolate brownie with raspberries?

And after lunch, what a treat was in store for us! We were so pleased to welcome  Rosie Lomas, a young operatic soprano, with her pianist Andrew Burr. Rosie and Andrew opened their recital with a selection of Burns songs (which would have been familiar to Mrs Gaskell), moving on to ‘Jock o’ Hazeldean’, the butt of humour in Cranford, a couple of arias from Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, followed by ‘The Sun Whose Rays’, from The Mikado, and then ending with ‘Auld Lang Syne’ which we all joined in, as requested by Rosie, who had most considerately printed the words on our programmes. Haste ye back, Rosie!

Our thanks to Jane Wilkshire, the Committee member who organised this event. We appreciated the work of the excellent hotel staff (who also loved Rosie’s performance). 

Helen Smith

Why not join us at NYL 2025? Our new menu for the new year includes heritage tomato salad, chargrilled chicken, sea bass and vegetable risotto with feta. The sticky toffee pudding is back (obviously!), but this time there’ll be treacle and orange tart, and chocolate fondant. We’ll have a new programme of entertainment, but the one thing that won’t change is the jolly atmosphere, the laughter and the warmest, brightest, friendliest start to the New Year. 

The Cottons Hotel & Spa, Manchester Road, Knutsford, Cheshire
From noon, Tuesday 14 January, 2025