Places to visit, attractions, heritage and things of interest in Suffolk, in the East of England.
It is said that Britain’s seaside towns are looking tired: unfortunately, in many cases, that’s true. But there doesn’t seem to be too much wrong with Suffolk’s Southwold. So we’re just going to show you a few photographs of this lovely little East Anglian resort, taken on an all-too brief visit on a warm, cloudless, […]
A short visit to Southwold Read More »
East of England
Orford Ness, a ten-mile long shingle spit on the Suffolk coast, is one of the most extraordinary places in Britain. Its environment, part natural, part man-made, provides a perfect, and in places rare, habitat for an enormous variety of flora and fauna. But, more than that, for the greater part of the 20th century it
What really happened at Orford Ness? Read More »
East of England
We are in the east of England, on the Suffolk coast. The town of Aldeburgh was once a thriving Tudor port; that’s where we’ll find the fort. And Thorpeness, well – Thorpeness was purpose-built in the 20th century – and that’s where we’ll find our house in the clouds. Few people now will have heard
From a house in the clouds to a fort Read More »
East of England
There’s not much left of Orford Castle, except for its keep – but that’s absolutely spiffing.  At the cutting edge of medieval castle design in its day, the keep has managed to survive for 800 years, still dominates the surrounding Suffolk countryside and coast; and the views from the top are terrific. Orford Castle was
Orford Castle – and a merman Read More »
East of England
Above is a representation of the warrior’s helmet from Sutton Hoo.  That helmet has a challenging appearance. Fearsome, haunting and spine-tingling, it demands that you imagine the man who may have worn it, and picture what he and his world were like. The image has drifted in and out of my dreams for years, such
Stories behind Sutton Hoo Read More »
East of England
The Scallop sits on the beach at Aldeburgh, in Suffolk. It is a 13 foot-ish (4 metre) high monument, by local-born artist Maggi Hambling, to the late Benjamin Britten, composer and past Aldeburgh resident, who used to take his afternoon walks along the beach. The sculpture consists of two, broken, interlocking scallop shells. Cut into
ABAB’s regular reader (thank you – the cheque’s in the post) will know that my knowledge of art could be sketched on the back of very small postage stamp. Nevertheless, in the endless pursuit of intriguing stories and occasionally stimulating bits of Britain, which may attract and amuse, the intrepid Bit About Britain team set
A bit about Constable Country Read More »
East of England
Including the counties of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. A radio disc jockey once did a dedication for someone living in Bury Street, Edmunds. Without wishing to offend the delightful town of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, perhaps this illustrates the fact that England’s eastern extremity is a little cut-off; you don’t go
A bit about the East of England Read More »
All East of England