Curious places in or facts about Britain; the quirky, off-beat or unusual.
The Queen looked west over Loch Tummel and liked it very much. She liked it so much that someone named the view for her. Or, maybe she commanded that it should be so. Sadly, there’s a little uncertainty over which particular queen we’re talking about here, but whoever it was does not alter the fact […]
A Queen’s View of the Highlands Read More »
Scotland
Given its two thousand-year history, it would be surprising if London had no secrets. Obviously, I cannot tell you how many it has, or what they all are… But It is certainly one of those places where you often turn a corner and stumble across something unexpected and interesting – a building, a memorial, some
I spy – secret London Read More »
London
It’s asking for trouble, isn’t it, using superlatives? Some smart-alec is bound to pop up and contradict your claim. Quite right too. But it’s an eye-catching headline and we really shouldn’t allow truth to get in the way of a good story. So, next time you happen to be walking across Trafalgar Square with a
The world’s smallest police station Read More »
London
Here’s a story with a healthy bite. There are thousands of varieties of apple, but just one that is generally considered to be the cook’s favourite in the UK – the Bramley. Bramley apples are large and green, with a sharp taste that makes them unappetising to eat raw, but flavoursome when cooked, with the
The tale of the Bramley apple Read More »
East Midlands
Which anniversaries were marked in Britain in 2018? The end of public hanging, votes for women, the first traffic light, the Roman invasion and Mick Jagger’s 75th birthday? Have a quick scan through the eclectic list of selected events below: though some may have slipped your mind, each one was on someone’s British calendar for
Anniversaries, 2018 Read More »
British Stuff History
Kendal, nestling conveniently on the edge of the English Lake District, is a famous town. This, after all, is the place where mint cake was discovered, Katherine Parr had a castle and Alfred Wainwright was Borough Treasurer; but these nuggets of distinction pale into insignificance when you realise that Postman Pat was born there. Indeed,
Postman Pat’s post office Read More »
North West England
This is one of our friend Jeni’s favourite places and she said we should go; so of course we did. Heysham (pronounced ‘hee-shum’, not ‘hay-sham’) sits on Lancashire’s coast at the southern end of Morecambe Bay. I knew of Heysham as a ferry port, offering services to the Isle of Man and Ireland, as well
St Patrick’s Chapel, Heysham Read More »
North West England
And neither did Catherine (or Katherine) of Aragon. What?! Let me explain…my London reader may have seen a plaque – not one of the official, blue, ones, but an altogether more elaborate, individual, affair – on the wall of 49 Bankside, London SE1. And it proudly declares, in fancy script: “Here lived Sir Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren did not live here Read More »
London
Every now and again you come across a story so terrible, so utterly bone-chilling, that you need a mug of cocoa and a lie-down to calm yourself. This particular narrative concerns (the clue is in the picture)… a small dog. Our tale begins in the year 1814, in Forfar (that’s a town, not a stutter),
The spine-tingling tale of Greyfriars Bobby Read More »
Scotland
You’ll find a curious thing at the end of a little path beside the school in the Kent village of Chiddingstone. It’s a great lump of sandstone, formed about 135 million years ago when this part of the world was a swampy mess. And this large rock is called the Chiding Stone, because (so they
Chiddingstone’s Chiding Stone Read More »
South East
The wealthy banker Lionel de Rothschild bought the Exbury Estate, in Hampshire, in 1919. In 1922, work began on creating what is now a 200 acre garden, internationally famous for its rhododendrons, azaleas, rare trees and shrubs.  Exbury Gardens are open to the public, nestle on the eastern edge of the Beaulieu River in the
Blooms and a mystery at Exbury Gardens Read More »
South East
Which anniversaries were marked in Britain in 2017? Have a quick scan through the eclectic list of events below, some of which may have slipped your mind; they were bound to have been on someone’s British calendar for 2017. 1650th anniversary of multiple assaults and near anarchy In 367AD, near simultaneous raids on Roman Britain
Anniversaries, 2017 Read More »
British Stuff History