These Girl Guides had good reason to be pleased – they had just been voted the most cheerful in England.

The six Guides in Thrush Patrol at Kidlington had cheered up a person, a place and themselves to earn the accolade in 1970.

Pictured left to right are Lindsey Brandom, 11, Gillian Workman, 12, Sarah Lowe (or Lower), 11, Susan Crook, 13, Irene Coyne, 14, and Susan Merry, 11, with district commissioner Eileen Perrin.

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They won the competition at division level, area level and regional level, then heard they had become national champions.

To earn the award, they first cleared land in Green Road, Kidlington, which had been bought the previous year for new Guide headquarters.

They cheered up the place by hacking down waist high nettles and clearing away rubble, rusty metal and other garbage.

They then helped towards the cost of building the new £6,000 headquarters by making articles for a fundraising bazaar.

For their third challenge, they heard that Frances Nee, a mother of five, had just moved to the village and needed cheering up, so they made her a cup of tea and let her put her feet up.

They then cleared her garden, cut her hedges and removed broken glass.

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Finally, they cheered themselves up by touring the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and enjoying a slap-up tea.

After being named English champions, Guide commissioner Mrs Perrin said: “We are absolutely thrilled. We never thought the patrol would get as far.”

•Our story about Slade Camp at Headington (Memory Lane, April 1) gave the wrong email address for the Shotover Preservation Society. It is sps@shotoverpreservation.uk

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

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