Innholdsfortegnelse for August/September 2020 i Discover Britain

• Orwell lived all over London, including at Notting Hill (22 Portobello Road), Islington (27b Canonbury Square) and Hampstead (77 Parliament Hill). His only English Heritage blue plaque is at 50 Lawford Road,›Kentish Town, where he lived for six months from August 1935, writing much of his third novel, Keep the Aspidistra Flying. www.english-heritage.org.uk • A small advance from his publisher, Victor Gollancz, in 1936, sent Orwell on a northern English adventure to Liverpool, Sheffield, Barnsley and Wigan. The poverty he saw there formed the basis of The Road to Wigan Pier, yet the irony was that Wigan Pier did not exist; it was nothing more than a railway gantry leading to a jetty. Today the Museum of Wigan Life is housed in the former library where Orwell researched the…

Loch Ness has drawn tourists, scientists and artists over the centuries, thanks to its expansive landscape, inquisitive wildlife and engaging tales of mystical monsters. The winding roads snaking around the loch appeal to cyclists, and several trails and paths make hiking a regular past time. Loch Ness contains more water than all the lakes of England and Wales combined; it is more than 20 miles long and reaches a murky depth of around 750 feet. Such scale makes it perfectly feasible that a great beast could, potentially, lurk in the depths. The story of the Loch Ness Monster – or “Nessie” – dates as far back as St Columba, who visited the area in the 6th century, and is reported to have seen a monster attacking a man. With a…

Come back soon With great sadness and joy, I received my latest issue of Discover Britain. Sadness, because I had to cancel my planned three-week trip to the UK due to the current pandemic. Great joy, because I can virtually enjoy visiting Great Britain via the wonderful photos and articles. It gives me new ideas of locations to tour in a future year, such as Strawberry Hill. Discover Britain is one of the few magazines that I read every page. Dawn Kravagna, Scottsdale, Arizona USA Finding a place to land I may have the answer to the query from Charles M Cowan who wrote asking about a “still-functioning airfield used by the RAF somewhere in East Anglia”. The Imperial War Museum has a branch at Duxford (not too far from…

The temptation when travelling is to be ambitious and make the most of your vacation time. Aim too high, however, and you can barely scratch the surface of a place. The best advice is often to think small – and no county in England is more compact than Rutland, which at just 17 miles wide is the ideal size for a satisfying week’s holiday. Not only that, but its unique history offers both breadth and depth, showcasing the best of Britain in the most palatable of packages. A visit to Rutland, just two hours north of London in England’s East Midlands, allows for big ambitions to be met in a small space of time. Rutland’s history began in earnest in the year 1002 AD, when it was granted to Emma…

TIME TO RAISE THE DRAWBRIDGE! Visitor attractions across the British capital will be opening their doors once more as the lockdown is eased this summer, at least for now. Leading the way rather suitably is Hampton Court Palace, which was often used as a country retreat by the notoriously hypochondriac Henry VIII during various plague outbreaks in Tudor London. The palace garden re-opened in June, followed by the building itself on 17 July. “It’s been sad to see it so quiet over the past couple of months,” said Lucy Hutchings, head of Hampton Court Palaces, an independent charity that looks after the historic riverside attraction. “Myself and the team can’t wait to welcome visitors back again and give them a suitably royal welcome.” Bookings are being taken in advance as…

1 Urquhart Castle Captured by Edward I in 1296, this prized castle changed hands between the Scots and English on several occasions, before being seized by Robert the Bruce in 1306. From that point onwards Urquhart faced attacks from the MacDonalds, the Lords of the Isles, as they attempted to widen their power base on the mainland, before the castle became the focus of the Jacobite uprisings. Though ruined today, it’s still possible to climb the Grant Tower, dating back to the 1500s, and visit the battlements, Great Hall and prison cells, and view a full-sized trebuchet. A café and visitor centre offer modern facilities in historic surroundings. www.historicenvironment.scot 2 The Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition For those who wish to digest the complete history of Loch Ness, this centre…

“When I’ve painted the last stripe of the day, my favourite place to go is Helford River” Karina Rickards, ceramic artist and Cornishware owner Thomas Gresham Green started Cornishware almost a hundred years ago. He acquired our first factory in Stoke-on-Trent when he was on his honeymoon – something my husband would do! I often visit the Potteries in Stoke-on-Trent for work. I’m always mesmerised by the liquid clay as it is poured out and crafted into one of our iconic Betty teapots. Cornishware is famed for its hand-painted stripes. When I’ve painted the last one of the day, my favourite place to go is Helford River on the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall. We have a wooden boat, which we sail up and down the river at Frenchman’s Creek. On…

A Grand Tour STEP INTO THE QUEEN’S BACKYARD TO ADMIRE BELGRAVIA’S GRAND ARCHITECTURE AND FANCY SHOPS Belgravia is an affluent district of central London which is enjoying its time in the spotlight following the recent TV adaptation of Julian Fellowes’ novel Belgravia. We begin this guided walk at Sloane Square tube station. Immediately next door is the Royal Court Theatre, which is noted for its much more highbrow and writer-led productions than many of the mainstream West End theatres. Early plays by John Osborne, Samuel Beckett and Bertolt Brecht have all been performed here. Walk down Sedding Street to admire a second world-class venue. Cadogan Hall is set inside a former 1907 church and a renowned home for classical music – the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is the resident ensemble here.…

Just imagine for a moment the thrill of arriving at a Rothschild party in the late 19th century. After taking the train out of London through the Chiltern Hills and into the Vale of Aylesbury, guests would transfer to horse-drawn carriage to navigate the winding fairytale paths through the Waddesdon estate before emerging triumphantly onto those grand, long lawns along the North Drive where they would be met with an unlikely view of a French-style chateau rising up in the middle of the Buckinghamshire countryside. On arrival, you would soon realise that you were in a for a weekend of fine wines, intellectual conversations and grand banquets, surrounded by glittering objets d’art and antiques. The house was built by the French architect Hippolyte Destailleur for Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. Curiously…

It is one of those strange curios of central London that locals can never quite understand. Walk past any of the old red telephone boxes in the city, from Bloomsbury to Covent Garden, and one can almost guarantee to find a happy tourist swinging from the door or pressed up against the glass inside for a photo opportunity. The red telephone box on Parliament Square is perhaps the most popular of them all, given it offers a perfect angle on Big Ben in the background (when scaffolding allows) as well as the chance to catch a passing red bus in shot as well – thus completing the holy trinity of the iconic London photo opportunity. The red telephone box feels like part of the fabric of the British capital The…