Enjoying retirement
In The Red Rose County
I was really looking forward to visiting Leeds not having been for a long time. As we waited on Skipton platform an excursion Pulman slowly passed on its way to a starting point for some lucky customers. Arriving at Leeds station I was disappointed by how old-fashioned it looked compared to Manchester, and on exiting our first impressions were not helped by huge works going on in the square outside. The Queen's Hotel (Eddie Waring's favourite bolthole) looked the same, and gets very good reviews on Tripadvisor. As we wandered through the city centre we were struck by the amount of building going on, and the totally unplanned mix in the building stock, with quite a lot of shabby areas. Some buildings were worth looking at however........ Our first objective was The Art Gallery, and going to the famous Tiled Hall we thought it similar to the V&A if a lot gloomier. The croissants and much else looked dispiriting, so we settled for a cup of tea The Gallery itself? Very provincial, unlike Manchester's I'm afraid. The main event is the Victorian room with mainly secondary artists. A lot of the Victorian stuff is sentimental which can appeal sometimes but not in overdoses! Here two Victorian drummer boys left behind in Afghanistan and subsequently murdered (and revenged). Here A Pauper's Funeral well painted. The last time i had seen this was a copy on the bedroom wall where I used to sleep in at my Coventry grandmother's. The sort of 'Empire' picture which a lot of households no doubt inherited. The charge of The Scots Greys at Waterloo. Impressive detail and unusually for such a military picture by a female artist. These atmospheric paintings were by a local painter with the lovely and somehow appropriate sounding name of Atkinson Grimshaw. Leeds when there was a strike and the steel foundry was shut down, and the Embankment London...... There was a limited amount of modern art, most of it unknown to me and limited in its appeal too. This however I did find interesting - a whole room devoted to one painting Wyndham Lewis's Praxitella, 1921, oil on canvas. "The story of how a lost masterpiece was hidden for more than 100 years under another famous 20th Century painting is being told in Leeds. Atlantic City depicted an abstract vision of a modern city. It was discovered in 2019 under a portrait called Praxitella, by Percy Wyndham Lewis, the founder of the short-lived Vorticists movement. Two students at the Courtauld Department of Conservation in London, used X-ray analysis to find it. Praxitella has been part of the collection at Leeds Art Gallery since 1945, and was created by Wyndham Lewis in around 1921. A spokesperson for the gallery said subtle clues, including raised paint lines and tiny surface cracks, led experts to believe there might be a second painting underneath it. However, with no way of knowing for sure the concealed composition's true nature remained a mystery. That was until Rebecca Chipkin and Helen Kohn were researching Praxitella, which was on loan from Leeds Art Gallery, and found Atlantic City, by Helen Saunders, the artwork which had been a secret for so long. Jane Bhoyroo, principal keeper at Leeds Art Gallery, said: "Praxitella has long been one of the most renowned works in the gallery's collection and is rightly recognised as a hugely important piece in its own right. "The discovery of a completely different work beneath it adds a whole new dimension and significance to Praxitella, giving its story even more depth and complexity." " I can't summon up much enthusiasm for much of the 'modern' art on display. Here a vulture (apparently) on the left and in the middle a bust of Apollo looking at two urns and on the right who knows? The other main display was the portrait wall on the landing, only one painter we recognised, some ordinary portraits, and not much to detain you. A single sheet of paper was left lying around showing the artist for each picture and that was that! Leeds Art Gallery? Disappointing. Next, to the so-called Victorian Quarter with its several Arcades. Pretty well done. Kirkgate Market however, supposedly the largest indoor market in Europe, was a complete flop. It was much smaller than Bury Market and a lot of it closed off. I saw one fruit and veg stall and not much else. And surely anyone, anyone, can be a bit more imaginative in showing where Marks and Spencer started............. ....all there is is a repro stall, completely closed, 200 yards from where the original was and with no explanations or anything else. What a disappointment........it's as if Leeds is showing this grudgingly. And the outside of the Market is disfigured with Sixties style signboards covering up what were some beautiful Edwardian ones as far as we could see (only one out of dozens on display). We decided to walk down to the Canal Area for something to eat, passing some worthwhile buildings ....and including the Corn Exchange, like a very small cousin of the magnificent one in Manchester....... We couldn't access the canal area. There were no restaurants, pubs or cafes which we fancied. So we hopped on the train and got off at Saltaire on the way back to have a perfectly satisfactory lunch at Salts MIll. What a huge disappointment Leeds had been!
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We've passed Cononley on our way to Saltaire a few times , looking a really picturesque village snuggled on a hillside, and we decided to investigate, and walk from there along the River Aire to Skipton, catching the train back from Skipton to Cononley. The day was fine and clear and on our way from Clitheroe we got some fine 360 views...... Cononley, once a lead mining centre, then the location for mills was every bit as pretty as we imagined. ....and some very good apartments in converted mills such as Hercules here.... Parking with some difficulty on the main street we set off to find the river down a pretty rural lane...... passing over the main railway line from Skipton to Leeds... A lone gate I just had to open and pass through......... The Aire looked benign but there have been horrific floods here......there are Brown Trout Chub Grayling Pike to be had, and I still sometimes get the urge to get out a rod. Not today anyway...... Stupidly we missed a turn on this straightforward walk and had to climb a rather steep Butlers Hill to get back on track. Walking this B road for half a mile or so was no real inconvenience..... and entering Skipton we got lost again in a rather large Council Estate before coming to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The towpath walk was full of interest. Here built onto the canal side the nicest possible care home you would wish to see...we both fancied it! After a quick drink in Rhubarb (disappointing) we went to the lovely rail station to catch one of the 4 an hour trains back to Cononley. The train was swift, cheap, very clean, silent as a whisper and gave us a lovely journey. The back roads in this area are full of stone villages and we couldn't resist The Tempest Arms. It has an excellent reputation thoroughly well-deserved.
Our bus trip to Skipton used to go up a back road to Barnoldswick and then turn round and come back along the same road which was in truth nothing out of the ordinary. We were taken by surprise when doing this trip to find it now goes beyond Barnoldswick and on a very scenic and interesting route through Earby, Thornton-in-Craven, Elsack and Broughton. We were first of all surprised however when we got to Barnoldswick to find it decked out as if for a visit of Britain in Bloom judges! The pic shows just the bus shelter....... Having got to Skipton we decided to take a longer walk than normal along the canal to Skipton Woods. We saw parts we had not seen before, and very nice too....... Here a statue of the great Fiery Fred Truman...what a bowler he was (together of course with Lancashire's own Brian Statham). This shows the canalside gardens of Alexander's a 'grand cafe' pub and restaurant. We really must try. As we were doing things differently today we took a different, lower route in the woods. Delightful. We had an even better trip home as we were on a double-decker. Fabulous.........
We hadn't yet been to Levens Hall in the Lakes as part of our Historic Houses membership. So we thought we would combine that with a day in the Lakes. We entered by the unassuming back entrance for which we had an apology as there was work being carried out on the front. No great shakes. Thefamily crest was well done. And the rustic seat was, well, rustic. The workmen were just finishing off presumably the re-painting of the pele tower. For this is an Elizabethan House, built around the 13th century Pele Tower. No pics inside allowed, so from their website ......the Drawing Room ....the Great Hall .....and the Dining Room The owners since 1170 were the de Redman family who sold the property to the Bellingham family in the 16th century; they enlarged and remodelled the house, only to have it gambled away in a game of cards before it was acquired by Colonel James Grahme in 1688. It subsequently passed through the female side of the Howard family during the 18th century and then to the Bagot family in the late 19th century. The information boards in the house were nearly all about the families who lived here and very little about the house itself which was a great pity. It was a very 'liveable' house and indeed is still a family home. After our self tour (we will return some time for a guided tour) we then wandered around the famous and very old topiary gardens which are indeed amazing. Having really enjoyed the gardens on such a pleasant day we passed what was obviously an old tithe barn on the way out, now accommodation and offices. Next destination, twenty minutes away The Punch Bowl Inn, for lunch. Lovely setting in the Lyth Valley, beautiful lunch. Not that many people come to this corner of the Lakes which is however famed for its damsons. I had a damson sorbet as part of my pudding - delicious. We then parked up at Newby Bridge for our cruise on Windermere. Here is our boat - The Swan - just coming in. We disembarked at Bowness for an hour or so - just enough time to wander around and have a drink. Not much in Bowness apart from hotels, tourist shops, walking shops and restaurants. But a wonderful setting of course. Our return trip was on the Teal which is called a steamer but actually runs on diesel now.
An intimate ground where Lancashire do well. I was there on my own for one day and with Frances for another. Lancashire won by 6 wickets against a strong Hampshire side. It was very hot and sometimes the pavilion was the best place...... During one interval, some players (Second team perhaps, but they were on christian name terms with the Hampshire fielders) practiced with a tennis ball and a plastic bat filled with of all things - beer! This was drunk by one of the players at the end. The cricket ground is in an area of Birkdale which is very wealthy indeed as pics of some of the houses show...... This particular one appears to have its own observatory...... Some were for sale so we can sneak a look inside......... On our way home we stopped on some dunes overlooking Southport's marine lake and had a little picnic....very nice.
We had read that the now famous London bakery had opened in opulent King Street so we thought we better try. Verdict - excellent. I liked their use of the Manchester Alphabet in their lobby.......... We then set off to walk to The Black Friar in Salford about which we had heard very good reports and wanted to scout for Frances's birthday coming up. Salford is a place no-one goes to. The inferior little brother on the other side of the Irwell. but really it has a lot to offer and on our walk there was plenty of interest. What was the original 'model lodging house' we wondered. "When this Model Lodging House opened in Bloom Street it was the first of its kind in the country. It offered accommodation for 285 men and some lodgers were said to have lived there for over twenty years.'' It is now swish apartments. The Victorians and Edwardians loved to embellish their public buildings and always cared for the architectural details. Here - Gas Offices. A church in a shed, not quite so architectural! Sacred Trinity was the first parish church to be built in Salford. It was founded in 1635 by Humphrey Booth, a prominent local merchant. The church was granted the full dignity of a parish church in 1650, and during the following century was the scene of much activity. In 1733 the Evangelist, John Wesley, preached inside Sacred Trinity but was forbidden access to its precincts on his return in 1747. The main body of the church was rebuilt in 1751 in the contemporary Georgian style. It is the only one of its name in the country. Located on a peninsular of land between Chapel Street and the Salford Approach to the former Exchange Station, the former Chapel Street Police Station was built in 1888 by Arthur Jacob, the Salford Borough Engineer. It is listed and is now used as offices. We arrived at The Black Friar, very unassuming (like Salford), and dwarfed by giant flats. But what a revelation inside. Seeking just a drink and a look at the menus we sat just here at the bar...very nice too. The courtyard garden and bar looked exceptional. What a find. We then made our way to our ultimate destination the Bridgewater Hall over the bridge into Manchester........ and via Parsonage gardens, a rare green oasis in Manchester city centre....... We were at the Bridgewater to hear the third of the Elgar Oratorios - The Kingdom. The first two oratorios had been exceptional. This 'The Kingdom' as performed by the Halle and massed choirs was a once in a life-time experience. That's all I can say. It was stupendous.
A beautiful day, what better than a magnificent house, wonderful gardens and a trip on the river. The dogs provide a nice welcome. We were just in time for our tour of the house with two excellent guides. The interior is truly magnificent all designed in a co-ordinated way by Robert Adam, John Carr of Yorkshire and Yorkshire-born Thomas Chippendale. The hall gives some idea of what is to come. Pics not allowed so a shot or two from the printed Guide..... Talking of co-ordination, the Tapestry Room, one of the finest of its type was designed around the tapestries....... William Weddell returned from the Grand Tour with a ship-load of riches. Adam designed him a rour de force Statue Gallery to house what is the best collection of Roman statuary in private hands in this country. The two square rooms with a central rotunda are in the style of a Roman house. It gives an exceptional feeling now but this must have been enhanced many times when William showed his guests around with lamps and candlelights giving them the feel of being in a Roman temple. I had wanted to go on the boat trip from the end of the garden last time but we just missed it. This time we hurried down the double herbaceous borders and made it. The half-hour trip up and down the Ure was soothing and well worth it. Green everywhere, reflected in the colour of the water. Our boatman explained that hereabouts, in between two weirs, the river is 7 or 8 metres deep as it was used extensively for commercial shipping in the old days. The train goes along a longish circuit of the gardens. Not for us today....... We missed this gate last time....quirky. As we sat in this 'room' of the garden we listened as Lucinda Compton, wife of the owner showed a group of her friends around. She is in the garden most days. More dogs. These worth talking to apparently! As we left we admired the hundreds and hundreds of tractors here for the weekend tractor fest.........
Lytham Hall garden centre was looking magnificent in the Summer sun, and it encouraged me to buy a truckload of plants for our backyard. I was in fact on my way to watch Lancashire play in a T20 at Blackpool's ground. Lovely afternoon's entertainment, and exciting too. Lancashire won in the last over. My member's card entitled me to cheap shandies in the pavilion, and I moved from sun to shade as the needs must.
Our second visit to Bramall. It really is an impressive house and one of my all-time favourites. It has unique features. But from the moment you enter you feel not only its history but its homely qualities. It feels as if it has been loved - by different generations, different families. And Stockport Council, now its guardian, seemingly run it on a shoestring. It deserves more. When we visited today, the grounds and cafe were surprisingly busy. It is after all a local green resource. But apart from one other elderly couple just exiting we were the only people looking round the house itself. Surely it ought to be better known, better marketed. Surely the house should be one of the North-West's most visited jewels? One of Cheshire's grandest black and white houses, the oldest parts date from the late 14th century, with later renovations dating from the 16th and 19th centuries. After talking to two friendly and knowledgeable staff in the entrance hall we set off on our exploration. This time it was the details we looked at particularly. The fine glass incorporating some medieval pieces... The family paintings I thought were reproductions but which are not.... and things like the door hinges, everyone individually crafted. not to mention some very fine door furniture.......a lot of all this installed by the Victorian owner of Bramall Hall, Charles Nevill, who evidently liked the Arts and Craft Movement. The chapel, opposite the Banqueting Hall, was the only place of public worship in Bramhall until the 19th century.[Its existence was first recorded in 1541, when it was referred to in the will of the second William Davenport. The Ten Commandments are written on the west wall. Underneath the Commandments, an older, pre-Reformation Passion painting, is visible which was whitewashed over during the Reformation. Here behind the pulpit 'Rabboni' by Herbert Schmalz. Schmalz was a talented Pre-Raphaelite artist born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne to an English mother and German father. Schmalz was supported in his early days by Charles Nevill of Bramall Hall where several other works by Schmalz can still be seen. After the First World War Nevill’s business suffered and despite being forced to sell many of his possessions, including Bramall Hall, he opted to donate two of his prized Schmalz paintings to local churches. ‘Rabboni’ was given to St Paul’s in Portwood which closed in 1971 when the painting was given back to Bramall Hall where it now graces the chapel. Mary of Magdela was given to Christ Church in Chester where it can still be seen. I loved this knot in the wood of one of the pews...... So far I have been unable to find out anything about the Davenport pew with its charming carvings....... In the solar are the very rare 16th-century wall murals, including one whichmay depict the nursery rhyme "Ride a cock horse", and another along the east wall depicting a man playing a mandolin. The walls were painted, most likely, in the 1538 for the wedding of William Davenport with Margaret Booth. It was a way to impress their guests, and cheaper than tapestries. The framework of the house is constructed with oak timbers, joined together using mortise and tenon joints and held in place with oak pegs. Wattle and daub or lath and plaster were used to fill the spaces between the timbers, and they have left an example on show. The Bramall Hall heraldic table carpet is a rare survival of a once commonplace object, and a splendid example of the high art of Elizabethan embroidery. More than 17 feet long by 7 feet wide, it is embroidered around the margins with thirty coats of arms.On three sides there are impalements of Davenport marital arms, while on the fourth side are the coats of families allied to the Davenports. In the centre of a large expanse of intricately woven floral patterned textile are three large coats of arms each encircled by the Order of the Garter. These comprise the royal arms flanked by those of two peers of the realm. The heraldry suggests that this important work was created during the lifetime of Sir William III Davenport (d.1576). it would have been used as a decorative cover for the high table in the Great Hall. The impressive plaster ceiling in the Withdrawing Room has been repaired and re-painted. It was the height of Elizabethan fashion, and shows how wealthy the Davenports had become. Each pendant is finished with a different hand-moulded boss. The beautiful armorial shows Queen Elizabeth's arms. The hall was home to the Davenport family for more than 500 years, before it was sold to Charles and Mary Nevill in the 1880s, who strove to maintain its original features whilst putting their own unique Victorian stamp on it. Here is Mary's boudoir...... The kitchen has a particularly homely feel. We spent quite a long time inside and listened to most of the excellent A-V displays. On such a nice day it was good to then wander around the grounds. Pleasant, but needing a lot of work. On the way back we dived into Derbyshire and had a look around the pretty Marple Bridge......
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August 2023
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