Our (not-entirely) serious predictions for the news headlines of the year ahead. Do you agree?

POTTERNE. Having been promised for 18 months by Wiltshire Council that sorting out the village’s drainage problem was a priority and after council workers spent days dredging the drains ,an almighty row with residents is predicted if the January rains brings serious flooding again to the homes outside Devizes which were deluged in November.

DEVIZES. After a year of disagreement between traders and the town council over the future of The Shambles which threatened to make the market live up to its name, a way ahead plan from the council’s working party is expected and it could well be that the proposed re-structuring is given the green light, enabling an additional floor to be built and much of the market given over to specialist food outlets and stallholders offering the best of the tastes of Wiltshire.

MARLBOROUGH. As pollution continues to be a pressing local, national and international concern, Marlborough Town Council may agree to a proposal to move the weekly market out of the High Street and away from noxious fumes. Marlborough High Street is one of the most-polluted in the county and the effects are potentially highly damaging to the health of shoppers and those who trade at the market.

TROWBRIDGE. After a nightspot in Westbury has been granted a sex entertainment licence, Trowbridge loses its dubious crown as the cheating capital of Wiltshire as residents trek to the White Horse town instead to get in the mood for what they shouldn’t.

WESTBURY. After investigations and checks by the Environment Agency, the cause of the notorious Westbury Whiff, the pong from the Hills Waste Solutions plant, is finally identified and sorted out, allowing residents to go into the garden again without fear of suffering the stench.

CHIPPENHAM. Inspired by local artists’ ambition to make Chippenham the art centre of the county, or “the St Ives of Wiltshire”, as the plan has been dubbed, the town council is tipped to request major funding from Wiltshire Council for the venture, heavily investing in the creation of an official Art Quarter, filling empty shops and providing hundreds of jobs.

CALNE. Hundreds, if not thousands, of motorcyclists are expected to ride into Calne on July 30th for Bike Meet 2022. Traffic is predicted to come to a standstill as the bikers head for the town centre where they are told to meet up. More than 1,000 bikers have already expressed interest in attending.