On the north-eastern edge of the Chilterns, seven miles north of St Albans in the ancient village of Flamstead, a bizarre annual celebration has resumed after a four year hiatus. The Flamstead Scarecrow Festival first ran in 2002 and now … Continue reading When Harry met Crow-ie: the scarecrows return
It’s a bold claim, by no less an authority than Country Life magazine (which must have profiled some eccentric estates in its time). The comment relates to Fawley Hill, near Henley-on-Thames. You can see why the esteemed magazine on country … Continue reading The ‘most bonkers estate in Britain’?
First: Merry Christmas! Or, at least, as merry a Christmas as circumstances will allow. Our thoughts go, in particular, to everyone who’s alone and doesn’t want to be, and/or those who have lost loved ones and friends in 2020. The … Continue reading World go local
Hildreth’s in Prestwood isn’t quite as old as the dinosaurs, even though a model tyrannosaurus rex used to adorn the entrance to the garden centre. These days it’s reproductions of a boar, a couple of chickens and a bear whose … Continue reading Old business, new cafe: bear with us
A little piece of history has returned to the hamlet of Ford in the Vale of Aylesbury. Just before Christmas, the Dinton Hermit – a historic coaching inn and pub which closed in 2013 – re-opened for business. It’s being … Continue reading The Hermit is back
You don’t tend to come across the phrase ‘licence to crenellate’ too much these days. I found it in the Buckinghamshire volume of Nikolaus Pevsner’s Buildings of England (1960). Pevsner uses the phrase in his description of Boarstall Tower – … Continue reading Boarstall Tower: a frank and Ernest history
A while ago, we wrote about the extraordinary Whipsnade Tree Cathedral – the embodiment of one man’s wish to commemorate friends who died in World War I, and to give others a place to reflect, a place of faith, hope … Continue reading An act of remembrance
Not a real polecat, I should say at the outset; you can sometimes glimpse polecats in parts of the Chilterns, and our friend Tony Marshall of Prestwood Nature tells us they are now breeding regularly. But in this case I’m … Continue reading Polecat returns: sorry, no (live) sheep
It’s one of the great weekends of the year. Hundreds if not thousands of fans descend upon a splendid and historic venue, wearing their colours, cheering on the proceedings. There’s always the chance of an upset but, whatever the outcome, … Continue reading At home with Vicky and Bertie
Mills of one sort or another used to dominate the landscape, making a vital contribution to the economies and lives of their communities. Now, across Buckinghamshire and the Chilterns at least, only a handful remain. As we await the UK … Continue reading Come back, Don Quixote: the mills return
Slow Travel: The Chilterns and Thames Valley 