CONTENT
- Destinations: Marlow, Buckinghamshire
- UK Travel tips and news
Welcome friends, its time to put the kettle on, settle into a comfortable armchair, and enjoy the best of Britain with Britain Update. But before you do, please take the time to forward this newsletter to someone who loves Britain as much as you do.
David Ross, Publisher
DESTINATIONS
Marlow
Buckinghamshire, England
Marlow has a reputation as one of the prettiest of many pretty villages scattered along the banks of the Thames River, and the reputation is highly deserved.
Marlow was a market town during the Saxon period, and grew in prosperity throughout the Middle Ages, but it was really not until the Georgian period that the town gained some measure of prominence as a fashionable place to settle. Several fine Georgian buildings remain in the High Street and West Street, but the oldest building is the Old Parsonage on St. Peter Street.
The delicate lines of the suspension bridge designed by William Tierney Clark in 1832 create a classic Thames picture. Clark was hired for the job after building the Hammersmith Bridge in London, but his design at Marlow was the highlight of his career.
More about Marlow ...
Travel Tips and News
Compton Acres Summer Events
Compton Acres garden, near Poole in Dorset, has a busy summer schedule of events for visitors. Here are a few selected highlights:
JULY 2ND Evening talk. Chris Allen, Compton Acres Head Gardener will be giving a talk on the theme 'Amazing Plants and Gardens'. Includes a talk in the Tea Room, followed by a tour of the gardens covering topics such as the history and origins of plants, diversity of plants, behind the scenes at Compton Acres and future developments. (Talk starts at the shop: 7.00pm, Maximum 15 people, all tickets £6.95) The talk will be repeated on July 9, 16, and 23.
JULY 5TH Performance of Richard Sheridan's classic stage comedy, "School for Scandal". By the Arena Theatre Company. £10.00 a ticket - Booking essential. Further performances on July 6, 8, 9
Evening talk. Mike Olczyk, Compton Acres resident wildlife expert, will be giving a talk on the theme 'Wildlife in your garden'. Includes how to attract wildlife to your garden, what's hidden in your garden and wildlife within Compton Acres. (Talk starts at the shop: 7.00pm, Maximum 15 people, all tickets £6.95) The talk will be repeated on July 24.
Compton Acres is open from 10.00am until dusk, and from 7.30pm till 9.00pm during the summer. More details including the full schedule of events can be viewed at http://www.comptonacres.co.uk/
Tewkesbury Abbey Medieval Manuscripts Exhibition
Visitors to historic Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucestershire, during the period 8th July - 30th September will have the chance to view rarely seen medieval manuscripts in a special exhibit entitled, "To the Greater Glory of God".
The manuscripts will include one from Hereford Cathedral, one from Cambridge University and a facsimile of one from Princeton University. The Hereford manuscript is 12th century and was originally given to John Evesham, a monk of Tewkesbury, by Thomas Winton. Open from 10am - 4pm weekdays and from 2pm on Sundays
Britain's Postbuses mark 35 years
Britain's Postbus service, carrying mail and passengers through many of the country's most remote and beautiful areas, celebrates its 35th anniversary this year. As well as taking letters and local people to and from villages and country towns, the service has proved popular with walkers and backpackers. It is also a great way to meet the locals.
There are more than 28,000 Postbuses, and they are not confined to country roads: there are 200 suburban routes, including some which run inside the M25 orbital motorway area around London. Most run twice-daily Monday to Friday, and if passengers hail a Postbus anywhere along the route, drivers will stop to pick them up.
The drivers are also a valuable source of local information for visitors exploring the area. The first Postbus service began in Mid Wales in 1967. The West Country, the Yorkshire Dales and Scotland (which has over 150 routes) are among other areas well served by Postbuses. For information and timetables, visit the website: http://www.postbus.royalmail.com.
Royal Gifts at Buckingham Palace
More than 200 of the gifts presented to Queen Elizabeth II during her 50-year reign will be on display at Buckingham Palace when it opens to the public (August 5 - September 29). The exhibition will be in the magnificent Ball Supper Room, which dates from 1855 and is one of the Palace's 19 State Rooms.
The Queen has made 76 State Visits to foreign countries, and 149 visits to Commonwealth ones, and has received 75 visiting Heads of State: an exchange of gifts is always made on these occasions.
Items on display in the exhibition include a carved ebony model of the Toran Gate in Ahmedabad, India, presented by the Governor of Gujarat; a Sevres porcelain wine-bottle cooler presented by President Pompidou of France; a model of an outrigger canoe from the Solomon Islands; and a silk scarf given to the Queen by President Mandela in 1995. There will also be presents from individuals encountered on overseas travels, including two drawings given by surrealist Salvador Dali in 1972.
Admission to Buckingham Palace and the exhibition is £11.50 adults, £9.50 senior citizens, £6 under 17s, family tickets £29. Advance tickets are available from http://www.royal.gov.uk/. The ticket office in Green Park is open from July 27 to Sept. 29 for advance and on-the-day sales.
Free National Trails map
Several new National Trails are opening this year and next, in some of the most beautiful parts of the country. One follows the remnants of the most northerly fortification of the Roman Empire; another is named after the last of the native Welsh princes, Owain Glyndwr; and a third cuts through the heart of the Scottish Highlands.
The British Tourist Authority has produced a free illustrated map, "Walking Britain", which details 40 of the best routes - a useful aid for armchair hikers.
For city lovers, walking is also an ideal way to visit London’s landmarks. The Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Walk, opened in 2001, follows a seven-mile route through the capital’s Royal Parks. You will see Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, St. James’s Palace and other places known by Diana.
Looking ahead to spring 2003, the Hadrian’s Wall Path will run for the first time along the length of this frontier of the Roman Empire (and allowing walkers to avoid trekking along 30 km of busy roads).
The BTA's "Walking Britain" map is available free from its overseas offices, or visit the BTA Website at http://www.visitbritain.com/
Regal Exhibition at Elgar's Birthplace
"Elgar and Royalty - from Victoria to Elizabeth II", a special exhibition marking the Queen's Golden Jubilee, is at the Elgar Birthplace Museum, Lower Broadheath, near Worcester, until October 31.
The great English composer Edward Elgar had many links with royalty, and the exhibition includes letters, concert programmes, musical scores, medals and honours, and items loaned by the Royal Collection, the Royal Archives and the British Library. Many of Elgar's works were written for royal occasions, or dedicated to members of the royal family - his 1930 Nursery Suite was dedicated to the Duchess of York (the late Queen Mother) and her daughters Elizabeth and Margaret.
The Elgar Birthplace Museum also has a display on the city of Worcester's royal links. The museum is open daily, admission adult £3.50, concessions £3, child £1.75. http://www.elgar.org/6welcome.htm
School, Monastery, Hotel, become Youth Hostels
Good news for those exploring Britain on a budget: the Youth Hostels Association England and Wales) has opened several new hostels. Among the openings are:
A new 32-bed hostel at Wells-Next-The-Sea, convenient for hikers along the North Norfolk Coast Path. In Northumberland, a 40-bed hostel has opened in a former school on the shores of Europe's largest man-made lake, and surrounded by Kielder Forest Park. For those touring the pastoral England-Wales borderland, a 30-bed hostel has opened in the Herefordshire town of Leominster, in what was originally part of a monastic complex. At Betws-y-coed in the mountains of North Wales a former hotel opens as a hostel in June.l In Dorset, the 28-bed YHA Portland has opened on the South West Coast Path, near the beauty-spot of Lulworth. Another coastal site, a former hotel on Cornwall's Lizard Peninsula, will open as a 30-room hostel in spring 2003.
Despite its name, the YHA is open to all ages, and with 228 hostels is the biggest provider of budget accommodation in England and Wales.
Website: http://www.yha.org.uk or visit the Britain Express hostel booking service at http://www.reservations.bookhostels.com/britainexpress.com/
That's all for now. Until next issue, let me remind you that laughter is contagious. Be a carrier.
David Ross, Publisher, Britain Express
