Sunday – Leominster – The sky is a uniform pale grey. A Robin sings, Jackdaws chack and Wood Pigeons coo. However there is no noise of gulls which were squawking and yelping loudly before dawn. Over the railway bridge. Below there is not a flower to be seen; everything has turned to seed. The gravel spit in the River Lugg is slightly larger showing the water level has fallen again. On Easters Meadow the Ragwort is looking tired, a few Angelicas are still in flower and of course the Himalayan Balsam is covered in flowers. White trumpets of Bindweed are scattered over the Brambles.
Numerous Pond Skaters are on Ridgemoor Brook and dragonflies dash to and fro above them. The market is busy. I buy a couple of large punnets of damsons. Many of the Pond Skaters under Ridgemoor Bridge are downstream of a large patch of reeds. The still water here means they have to expend little energy to stay where they are. The River Kenwater is also very shallow. Bell practice at the Priory sounds a little chaotic again. New banners depicting local worthies are being installed in Broad Street. Into Drapers Lane. The butchers had ceased trading, yet another shop gone.
In the late afternoon we have a short downpour which is welcome, but we could do with much more.
Monday – Leominster – Overnight and into the morning there is, at the long last, a fair amount of rain. The garden is finally wet. By mid-afternoon it has warmed up and quite humid. Clouds still linger overhead. Down to Pinsley Mill. Jackdaws chack on the rooftops. All but the very tops of the Rosebay Willowherbs have turned to fluffy seed.
In the Millennium Orchard the Tom Putt cider apples are beginning to turn red and a good number have already fallen. A Hazel by the railway track shakes as a Grey Squirrel tugs off the nuts. A Chiffchaff is calling. Its autumn song is much weaker and less precise and its spring offerings. The areas of flowers and Stinging Nettles have been cut back in the park. The rain has done little to raise the water level in the Kenwater. The pea-like pods on Lime trees have split open to reveal a pair of spherical seeds. Two Garden Spiders have made their webs next to the entrance to the Priory.
Home – In the late afternoon there is an impressive downpour. The middle water butt is completely filled, some 200 litres. All the passages at the back of the house are flooded. We discover two of the drains are not really working properly; another expense coming up.
Wednesday – Oldham – The area has been occupied since the Neolithic. Roman and Brythonic remains have been found nearby. Danish invaders established a settlement in 865 called Aldehulme. It remained a small, scattered community until the 19th century when it became an international centre of textile manufacture. It was a boom town of the Industrial Revolution, and among the first ever industrialised towns, becoming the most productive cotton spinning mill town in the world, producing more cotton than France and Germany combined. Oldham’s textile industry fell into decline in the mid 20th century; the town’s last mill closed in 1998.
I start from one of a large number of late 19th or early 20th century streets to the south of the dual carriageway that divides the town. There are still parades of shops, all Asian owned. Other streets are mid to late 20th century. An attractive modern Bridge crosses the busy A627, the Oldham Way. This is partly on the route of the LN&Y Middleton Junction and Oldham Branch Line which partially closed in 1958 and finally in 1963. The town is now linked to the Manchester Metropolitan area by the tram network. In the distance is a large former mill and beyond the moors, topped by windmills, grey under a threatening sky. On the other side of the bridge is a large pedestrian area with the modern buildings of Oldham Sixth Form college. Its entrance is a stone arch originally part of Oldham Royal Infirmary which opened here in 1872 closing nearly 120 years later. Opposite is a red brick presbytery of the church of our lady of Mount Carmel and St Patrick erected in 1898. The church is in yellow stone. The Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Patrick was built 1869-70 to the designs of Mitchell of Oldham, with remodelling of 1907. By. The reredos to chancel is beautifully decorated and stained glass in east windows. The church is open but a service will start soon so I do not stay. St Patrick’s school stood next to the church but has gone.
Opposite is a small park and a bridge over the Metro. An old red brick factory is still in use although the building is in a poor condition. A large former cinema is empty and decaying. It was the Grand Theatre, opening in 1908, designed by architects Thomas Taylor and Ernest Simister. The building was completely redesigned by Gaumont Super Cinemas in 1937 when the site was re-opened by comedian George Formby.
Past a Peace Garden and into Union Street. The street consists mainly of fast food, small convenience and vape stores. Many of these are in late Victorian or early 20th century buildings, there are also a good number of modern buildings. The Buck and Unicorn pub is closed down. Behind the street is a large modern shopping centre and multi-story car park. The Prudential Insurance buildings are a large stone and brick four-storey edifice with terracotta dressings, and recessed polygonal towers over marble entrances, but alas it is empty and covered with bushes growing out of the stone work. A large yellow stone building has “Lyceum” on one portico and “Science and Art” on the other. The Lyceum was built in 1856 and the Art School added in 1881. Pennington of Manchester was the original architect. Across the road is the former Post and Telegraph Office built in 1877. An impressive stone building with fine entrance but a heavily bolted door and boarded up windows was the Masonic Hall built around 1880. Next to is the United Reform Church of 1877. Next to that is a bank and it is still a bank. It was built in 1892, by the Oldham Joint Stock Bank Limited by Thomas Taylor. Opposite this is the Free Public Library Art Gallery and Museum of 1883. Although the entrance is boarded up, it is obviously still in use and undergoing restoration.
Into Queen Street. Two more fine late Victorian buildings are followed by a terrace of three storey offices of accountants and solicitors. A blue plaque on one of the buildings states it was the offices of Joseph Platt (1863-1930). From 1895 to 1920, he was secretary for the Northern Union which later became the Rugby League. He was also an official of Oldham football club.
Into Yorkshire Street. The Town Hall Tavern is still operating but the Hare and Hounds appears to have closed down. Another bank is still in operation in a fine Edwardian building. Opposite is a monumental red brick and stone of 1925, the former Greaves Arms pub. Nearby is the Town Hall, built in 1841 and extended in 1879-80. Designed by George Woodhouse of Bolton and Edward Potts of Oldham, a typical huge northern edifice. A plaque records that it was here that Winston Churchill started his political career by becoming MP for Oldham in 1900. Outside the statue of Annie Kenney, suffragette. Here also is a column surmounted by an owl, symbol of the town. Opposite is Church Terrace. A row of 19th century buildings leads to the War Memorial erected 1923 by Oldham County Borough. It was designed by architect Thomas Taylor of Taylor and Simister with a bronze sculpture by Albert Toft. Opposite is the entrance to the church of St Mary and St Peter. Some 3500 names are recorded on bronze plaques by the church steps.
The church is locked. It was built between 1827-30 by Richard Lane in the Gothic style. A gravestone leans against the church dated 1722. Another War Memorial is here. Across the street from the church is the Court House and offices designed by Henry Tanner in 1894. It is in red brick with white terracotta dressings and Westmorland slate roof.
Into High Street where Barclays Bank is now closed and empty. Several more large early 20th century buildings have shops on their ground floors often spoiling the effect of the building. Number of other buildings are modern. Hilton Arcade of 1893 has rows of empty shops; apparently it is under redevelopment.
The arcade emerges into a modern precinct where Tommyfield Market Hall stands. The original market hall was built in 1788 but this burned down in 1974. The current building was opened in 1994. It now appears this will be demolished soon and the market moved to the nearby Spindles Shopping Centre. It is recorded that a stall in Tommyfields was the first placed to sell fried chips, though a pinch of salt may be needed… Being early afternoon many of the stalls are beginning to pack up. Behind the Market Hall is a large open air market. At the far end of the area is a large modern rotunda building. Opposite is a fine early 20th century building in white stone. In Curzon Street is another large early 20th century building with numerous bushes growing out of the upper floors.
Back to the Town Hall and down Greaves Street. An office building of 1901-2 by Edgar Wood is empty. A double fronted building was the Greaves Street Society of Friends; founded in 1867 and closed in 1942. The building became the “Oldham Junior Tech” between about 1946 and 1951. A large ornate stone building is now a bar. Across Union Street and behind the Old Post office is the museum. Two large stone scrolls and two large stone lions stand outside the old museum. Further on down the street is the modern museum. The galleries have local interest and art. A display is called “Ocean Drifters”, a host of giant jellyfish from inflatable artists Designs in Air. At the back, over the library is a large natural sedum roof. On a platform outside the gallery are beehives, just beyond windows giving nice views of the busy creatures.
Back along Union Street. Back at the junction with King Street is a stone pillar, all that is left of King Street Baptist church. In King Street are old commercial buildings, most in poor repair. Back to the footbridge. On the far side below the footbridge is a large area of dense undergrowth and trees. Unfortunately it looks like it is becoming overwhelmed by Japanese Knotweed.
Grain Bar – My hotel is a few miles north of the town centre in Grains Bar. This is a crossroads where the parishes of Oldham, Saddleworth and Shaw and Crompton met. The name “bar” refers to a toll gate. The hotel is a much expanded 17th century farmhouse. The King’s Arms pub is nearby. There was also an inn on the junction, later an Indian restaurant and now a ruin. Outside my hotel is the border of West Yorkshire.
Thursday – Delph – I leave my hotel and travel down though Delph and into Castleshaw Valley. Two reservoirs lay at the head of the valley constructed by Oldham Corporation Water Works between May 1887 and September 1891. The upper reservoir can hold 1,087 million litres of water whilst the lower reservoir holds 623 million litres. They still supply Oldham with drinking water. A Roman fort was built here in 79 CE it was built of turf and timber and housed an auxiliary cohort of 500 men. It was abandoned after 15 years but the site was reused in 105 CE for a smaller fort. It was again abandoned in 125CE and the troops probably sent north to Hadrian’s Wall. There is evidence of a vicus, a civilian settlement next to the fort. In the Middle ages, the valley formed part of “Friarmere” owned by the abbey of Roche. After dissolution in 1538 the land was sold to Arthur Assherton. By the late 18th century textile production had reached the valley and by 1800 there were eight woollen mills in the Valley, all water powered by the fast flowing Hull Brook.
A strong wind blows across the moors the sky is overcast and clouds sit on the hilltops. Rowan trees have a good crop of the million berries which is feeding the local Blackbirds. Chaffinches and Goldfinches are in Hawthorn bushes and a Starling sits on wire. Into Cote Lane. A footpath climbs the hill through a sheep field. It is raining, I am soon soaked. The fort consists of an outer rectangle with an inner one, much smaller which would be the later fortlet. The ground markings are modern to show the layout of the site.
Back to Delph. I park beside the graveyard of the old Methodist chapel. The original chapel was built in 1780 but was destroyed by fire in 1894. It was replaced by a larger church however this was demolished in 1957 due to dry rot. Opposite is the Reform Club of 1883, architect A Banks of Oldham. Into King Street. The fish and chip shop is in a building of 1769. A late 18th century bridge crosses the River Tame. Past several dwellings that were once shops. At the top of the high street is the White Lion, once three houses, having rows of upper windows indicating they were once used for weaving. Opposite is Delph Independent chapel is abandoned and boarded up with no trespassing signs. The chapel was founded in 1746, the oldest non-conformist chapel in Saddleworth and before Delph existed as a village. It closed in the late 1980s and has been the subject of extended planning disputes. Back down King Street. Behind it is St Thomas’s church, formally St Hilda’s Mission. Opposite is St Thomas’s Court, once Delph Conserative Club, which has windows on the ground floor with for “Our Queen Empire Liberty” over them. On the corner of Church Street and King Street is a large former bank building which has a logo over the door, probably that of the Manchester and County Bank. At a junction at the top of the road is the Millgate Arts Centre in the former Co-op building of 1899. Behind King Street also large buildings with numerous windows which indicates weaver’s premises.
Sunday – Leominster – After a night of rain the sky is still grey and a few drops still fall. Jackdaws chack and a Robin sings in a garden behind the houses. The recent rain has done little to change the water level in the River Lugg. However the rain has cancelled the Sunday market so I am later than usual and the bells of the Minster are already ringing. A Robin sings briefly. Back over the railway bridge. A pair of Carrion Crows are in the plant equipment yard beside the railway station. They fly off and a Magpie arrives.
Into Pinsley Mill. A Chiffchaff calls from across the railway. Several Magpies are chuntering loudly. Into the Millennium Orchard. Another Chiffchaff and Great Tits are calling. In a tree is a strange looking bald Blackbird. Apples are beginning to fall. A dessert apple, Crimson Queening and a cider apple Tom Putt on the ground in good numbers. The sun comes out. Through the churchyard onto the Grange. A new set of railings have been placed around the Verdun Oak protect it from further damage. A small dog is chasing a large red balloon around the grass but unfortunately bursts it.
Home – Courgettes and rhubarb are harvested and turned into chutney. Beetroot are pickled and some left for dinner. Seedlings of a mix called “Stir Fry” are pricked out. The leeks are earthed up a little more.
Monday – Cradley – The sky is overcast with a glare on the east. I start from a small estate just outside Cradley. The village lies in the Colwall Valley, created by the Mathon River flowing south some 500,000 years ago. 450,000 years ago, the Anglian ice sheet eliminated the river. Ice at the end of the valley blocked it and created a lake. When the ice melted, Cradley Brook was left, flowing north. The Domesday Book records Credelaie, from Creoda’s Leah, Creoda’s Wood or Meadow. A priest was present, so a Saxon church was here. A mill was recorded and several others were in operation up to recent times. Crops were mainly fruit, apples, pears and hops.
A patch of grass had a large circle of Field Mushrooms on it. A 17th century timber-framed house stands in the corner of the estate. Onto Vinesend Lane. The dwellings are a mixture of 17th century through to modern. The road descends to a dip where the old post office stands with other timber-framed buildings. A brook runs under the road. Road rises to the War Memorial unveiled in April 1920. Nearby is the vast late 18th century rectory next to the church of St James the Great. The tower was built around 1200 and heightened in the 15th century. The church was restored 1868 by George Gilbert Scott and further restored with addition of aisle in 1869 by A E Perkins. The lych gate dates to the 16th century or even earlier. On the churchyard is the church cross, probably mediaeval. It has a square base and part of octagonal shaft. It is now used as a sundial which was restored to celebrate Victoria’s Jubilee of 1887. Inside, the font was given by Thomas Bisse (who played an important role in establishing the Three Choirs Festival) and dated 1722. There is a large chest with iron straps and hinges and two with fleur-de-lis ends. It is probably mediaeval. The nave benches are plain, of 1869, but the choir stalls have ends with poppy heads, some of which are 16th century. A wooden screen is in between the nave and chancel. The east window shows the Resurrection in bright colours, possibly by Frederick Preedy.
In the churchyard there is a small Hawthorn grown from a cutting off the Glastonbury thorn. There are several ancient yew trees in the church yard. Many of the gravestones are eroded beyond readability. Beside the churchyard is a timber-framed building, probably the church ale house, later a boys’ school and now parish hall. It is dated circa late 15th or early 16th century, extended in 1674 and restored in the 19th century. A Nuthatch calls from the trees.
Out of Rectory Lane and down Esk Bank. The old school house lays back from the road. The road passes mainly 20th century houses. A field contains three cows, one pretty little dark grey calf and a very large red bull. Into Finchers Corner and over King’s Bridge which crosses Cradley Brook. Past Kingsbridge, a 17th century cottage with additions and alterations in every century since. A footpath runs off opposite a fine Victorian house. 20th century houses have been built along the track with one early 18th century cottage.
The foot path is on the edge of the village of Westfield. It emerges onto Chapel Lane. Modern houses line the lane until it reaches a small park. Many of the houses are now older. Cradley chapel has a flight of steps to a second floor entrance. It still holds weekly services. A neighbour tells me the building is a Countess of Huntingdon chapel, dated to 1823. The manse is next door dated on the wall as 1927 but she believes it is at least a century older. There is a small graveyard on the other side of the chapel.
Back down the lane. A French Cranesbill is in flower on the verge. Past Green Farm House which is 17th century. A Victorian house stands next to Cradley Brook, which is crossed by a narrow footbridge, Pound Bridge. An ancient Ash tree stand next to the brook. A dragonfly darts downstream. The path continues with a water channel running alongside it. Pound Brook Cottage stand across the canalised brook. Another timber-framed cottage is further on. The path arrives Vinesend Lane, opposite the post office mentioned earlier, where Pound Brook proves to be the one that disappeared under the road here. Route
Home – Work starts on clearing the “meadow”. Knapweeds and umbellifers need pulling out, a heavy, back-breaking task. I do not manage more than three bags worth. Some Red Current tomatoes are picked. A Wood-sage Plume, Capperia britanniodactylus, a rather unusual looking moth is on the house wall.
Wednesday – Leominster – After several days of grey and rain the sky is blue with fluffy white clouds but there is a chilly northern wind. The water level in the River Lugg has risen slightly. Pond Skaters are on the water under Mosaic Bridge. An ethereal mist rises from the water in the sunlight. Along the path beside the river. A Red Admiral butterfly and bees are on the last Buddleia flowers. Easters Wood is being thinned and draft horses are being used to clear the logs. Robins sing. Along the path beside the paddocks. Flies buzz around my head, an increasingly rare occurrence. A Common Buzzard is mewing somewhere high on Eaton Hill. A new gate has been installed to replace the stile when the path reaches the A44. It is an initiative by Leominster Walkers are Welcome and sponsored by Transition Leominster.
The River Lugg flows slowly under Eaton Bridge. Long strands of river reeds lay in the flow. The herd of British White cattle are on Lammas Meadow. Over the old A44 road bridge. A Carrion Crow bobs as it caws at the top of a dead tree. On the far side of the bridge are a few Blackthorn bushes. I gather some sloes to add to those in the gin at home. Onto Worcester Road. A large animal transporter passes with “moo” as part of its registration plate.
Along Southern Avenue and into Hereford Road then up the foot path to Cockcroft Lane. Haws are scarlet, large bunches of purple-black elderberries and blackberries, some yet to ripen, others moulding, festoon the hedgerow. By Rylands, a Chiffchaff calls from the trees and a Common Buzzard from above. The big field to the south of the lane has been ploughed and is now being harrowed.
Thursday – Barnard’s Castle – We head north, a long haul up the busy M6 with a break at Tebay, then across the dales to Barnard’s Castle. On a previous visit we did not go to the castle so this time we take a look around. It is a substantial ruin. A bridge crosses the River Tees, a site of a ford used by the Romans. The castle stands high above this bridge on a plateau, clearly an important defensive site. The first castle was probably established by the Picard knight Guy de Balliol. He had supported William II in the suppression of a rebellion in Normandy in the 1090s, and received estates in north-eastern England as a reward. Between 1125 and 1185 his nephew Bernard de Balliol and his son Bernard II extended the building. In 1296 the castle was passed to the Bishop of Durham. Around 1300 Edward I granted it to the Earl of Warwick. In the 15th century the castle passed by marriage from Anne Beauchamp, 16th Countess of Warwick to her husband, Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick. In 1477 during the Wars of the Roses, Richard, Duke of Gloucester took possession of the castle by right of his wife, Anne Neville. During the rebellion of the Earls of Northumberland and Westmorland in 1569, the castle, which was then the property of the crown, was garrisoned by Sir George Bowes, of Streatlam. During the Civil War, the castle was besieged by Cromwell, to whom, after a severe cannonading, the garrison surrendered. After frequent grants and reversions, the castle, lands, and appurtenances, were purchased by Sir Henry Vane the Elder, ancestor of the Duke of Cleveland, himself a Viscount Bernard along with Raby Castle for £18,000. He chose to make Raby his principal home and de-roofed and removed stone from Barnard Castle to repair and maintain Raby.
Into Horsemarket. Shops occupy former Georgian and Victorian houses. The Turk’s Head pub has closed. The street becomes Market Place. An Arts Centre is in a building originally constructed in 1846 as a memorial to local philanthropist, landowner and geologist, Henry Witham. It has WITHAM in large letters across the portico. The weather is getting threatening so we return to the bridge but get caught in a downpour.
Friday – Escomb – We stay in the much enlarged 16th century Saxon Inn in the little village. The village is referred to in 10th century as Edicum when it was mortgaged by Bishop Aldune to some Viking Earls. There is evidence that coal mining started here in 1183 and ceased during WWI. In the centre of the village is the Saxon church. The church is a simple two cell structure and is largely as it was originally built in 650-700CE, though the south porch, with its ancient cross fragments, is a much later 14th century addition. The masonry of large blocks and quoins is partly made up of Roman stones from nearby Binchester, Vinovium, fort, but the walls are constructed in the Saxon style of long and short work. It was restored between 1875-80 by R J Johnson and in 1965 by Sir Albert Richardson. A Saxon sundial is believed to be the oldest in the country still in its original position built into the south wall, and a later 17th century sundial on the porch. Besides a beast and a fishtailed serpent, there are only three marks on the dial, showing the early monks’ three principal times of worship. A Roman arch leads to the chancel. The font is probably 12th century.
A family group of House Martins are overhead. A path leads to the River Wear. An Ash tree, maybe 30 years old, appears have died then a couple of years ago regenerated with lots of whippy branches. There is a rocky area beside the river which is running low.
Bishop Auckland – We drive to this medium-sized market town and park in a large car park attached to a supermarket. It is on the site of the old station and the NER Consett and Darlington Branch running east-west and Bishop Auckland Branch line which ran north through the town. The station was originally built in 1843 and rebuilt in 1857 as more routes were created. The River Wear and the River Gaunless run around the edge of the town. The name derives from Alclyde meaning “cliff on the Clyde”, which may have been the old name of the Gaunless. The “Bishop” part relates to its ownership by the Bishops of Durham. In 1083, Bishop William de St-Calais expelled a number of canons from Durham. Some of these settled in the area and established a collegiate church. Around 1183 Bishop Pudsey established a manor house in the town, with a great hall being completed in 1195 on the site occupied by St Peter’s Chapel today. Bishop Bek, who preferred the town as his main residence over Durham Castle due to its proximity to hunting grounds, later converted the manor house into a castle. At the end of the Civil War, Auckland Castle was sold to Sir Arthur Hazelrig, who demolished much of the castle, including the chapel, and built a mansion. The town grew in the Victorian period mainly through coal mining and ironworking. The end of heavy industry meant the town turned to retailing but the growth of large out of town malls led to the decline of this trade. The town is now developing tourism.
We wander along Newgate Street and down Railway Street. The Hippodrome stands at the top of the street. It was a cine-variety theatre built in 1909 by J J Taylor under the supervision of George F Ward for Signor Rino Pepi. It was used as a cinema until convertion to a bingo hall in 1960. There are a number of small industrial units here. Into South Church Street. A house was the lodge of Bishop Auckland Girls’ Grammar School, now Middle School of King James I Comprehensive School, dated 1910. Further on is the former Grammar school, now the lower school of comprehensive school. It was founded 1604, first building on this site schoolroom and house in 1864. Extensions were added in 1873-4 to accommodate boarders and a front block in 1897 with the addition of technical workshops and physical laboratory. The 1864 building was by Austin of Newcastle, probably Thomas Austin.
Back round to Newgate Street. The area is generally depressed, the shops the cheap end of the market. A huge, ornate building was the former Co-op, another bargain store was obviously Woolworths. We walk to Market Place. The Town hall and market, with reading room and assembly room, originally incorporated two shops. It was built in 1860-62 by J P Jones for the Bishop Auckland Town Hall and Market Company Ltd. Next to it is St Anne’s church built as a chapel of ease, on site of medieval chapel, in 1846-8. It was designed by William Thompson and built by William Edgar. Across the road are mid 18th and early 19th century houses, including the Vicarage. Behind the church is former National Provincial Bank dated around 1860. It is in the Gothic Revival with a large turret tower on the corner. It now contains the Mining Art Gallery, a superb collection of art by miners and those connected to the industry. In particular is a wonderful version of Picasso’s Guernica showing the Battle of Orgreave. Beyond is the Auckland Tower, a 29 metre high construction in Larch whose design by Nìall McLaughlin was informed by a siege machine.
We travel on to Gateshead. With our friends we catch the Metro into Newcastle. After a couple of pints in The Exchange we walk across the High Level Bridge over the River Tyne. It was designed by Robert Stephenson to form a rail link towards Scotland and a carriageway for road vehicles and pedestrians was incorporated to generate additional revenue. The main structural elements are tied cast-iron arches. It was built by the Hawks family from 5,050 tons of iron. George Hawks, Mayor of Gateshead, drove in the last key of the structure on 7th June 1849 and the bridge was officially opened by Queen Victoria later that year. Trains still use the top deck but only buses and pedestrians use the lower deck. Beyond is the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge of 1981 and the King Edward bridge which was opened in 1906. On the far side is Newcastle castle.
A Roman times fort and settlement called Pons Aelius (bridge of (Publius) Aelius (Hadrianus) – the Roman emperor Hadrian) guarding a bridge over the River Tyne. Robert Curthose, eldest son of William the Conqueror, in 1080 built a wooden motte and bailey style castle (the New Castle) on the site of the Roman fort after he returned south from a campaign against Malcolm III of Scotland. Henry II built the stone Castle Keep between 1172 and 1177 on the site of Curthose’s castle. Henry III added the Black Gate between 1247 and 1250. Nothing remains above ground of the Roman fort or the original motte and bailey castle. Into The Bridge Hotel built in the Art Nouveau style in 1899 by Cackett, Burns Dick for J Fitzgerald. Sir John Fitzgerald DL JP (1857-1930) was an Irish-born brewer and wine and spirit merchant, who served as Lord Mayor of Newcastle upon Tyne from 1914 to 1915. He founded a chain of pubs in the city.
Sunday – Pelaw – Across an area of grasses, Toadflax, fluffy headed thistles and rusty coloured Docks to the Metro station. Over the station. A large area by the tracks has Brambles, Herb Agrimony, Tansy, Field Bindweed and berry-laden Elders. A Blackcap is ticking. A pair of Ring-necked Parakeets fly over. We head home, south and west along busy motorways.
Wednesday – Bodenham Lake – It looks like no-one comes to Bodenham any more since the Wildlife Trust introduced parking charges. Along the track Old Man’s Beard is in flower. Several Dog Roses have bright red Robin’s Pin Cushions (rose bedeguar galls) caused by the Bedeguar Wasp. There are three Grey Herons, nine Little Egrets, a Great Crested Grebe, a Little Grebe and a Mallard on the boating lake, but very little on the other areas. There are sheep on the meadow. Into the orchards. A good number of cider apple trees have little or no fruit, however some others are well laden. Into the dessert apple orchard where a large number of apples lay under the trees. I collect a bagful.
Home – Last night was the Harvest Full Moon, a super-moon and a slight eclipse. The former lit up the sky and land but the eclipse was not until the early hours. I harvest some more beetroots and courgettes. A refrigerator drawer is half filled with pears and there are still a lot on the tree. A new, heavy duty stake is hammered into the ground and a rope pulls the pear tree up into a slightly more upright stance. Some lettuces and pak choi are planted out under a polythene cloche. Basil is cropped and turned into pesto.
Wednesday – Home – The morning starts dry but like most days recently, rain returns. There has been flooding in Central England and some around the West Midlands but the really heavy rain has passed us by. In the last two mornings I have been collecting cider apples – Tom Putt variety. Today I crush and press them. The yield is nearly five gallons and I have a sack of apples left. At the weekend I will collect some Dymock Reds. I am not sure if there are any Herefordshire Redstreaks or Michelins, I need to check. There are just a few Genet Moyles. As usual, Dabinett and Lady’s Finger apples are some way off yet.
One of the hens is laying eggs with thin shells which get broken in the nest creating a mess. There is a bit of oyster shell available but I will get more. I will have to pick the rest of the Conference pears soon, although what I will do with them, I know not! The garden is slowing down although there are still tomatoes, courgettes, beetroots, parsnips, chard and purple sprouting to harvest. One of the aubergine plants has a couple of fruit, the tiniest imaginable.
Friday – Leominster – A wet and windy night. Large areas in the Midlands have suffered flooding again. Here, the wind has dislodged lots of conkers from the great Horse Chestnut overhanging the garden. A skein of Canada Geese flies over.
The sun glows through a sky of grey cloud. It is cooler and a brisk wind still blows. Onto the railway bridge. Jackdaws swirl and dance in the wind over the town. Birds in the woods are silent. Unsurprisingly after so much rain, the water level in the River Lugg has risen considerably and the water is a muddy brown. The shingle banks have become completely submerged.
Back over the railway bridge. A South Wales bound train draws in. It is made up of five carriages, something rarely seen around here and in fact it does not actually fit the platform. I purchase some oyster grit from Hinton’s, hoping to stop the soft eggs.
Through Pinsley Mill and into the Millennium Orchard. There are a few Michelin apples but not many have actually fallen. A fair number of Dymock Reds are down but again not a lot of Herefordshire Redstreak. A large number of Tom Putts are still on the ground. Both Genet Moyle trees have few fruit and they are yet to fall. Finally the Dabinett and Ladies Fingers are nowhere near ready to unload yet. The cooking apple section of the orchard, Herefordshire Beeflings and Bramleys, has very few apples. This matches the Bramley tree that overhangs out garden that is also barren this year.
Home – Disappointingly, the lettuces and pak choi planted out just a short time ago have completely disappeared despite the cut yoghourt pot collars around them. The hens are slowing down in egg production. I make five jars of pear chutney. The end of the afternoon sees blue skies and the wind has dropped.
Sunday – Leominster – To the east the pre-dawn sky is a fiery orange. Later, it is a mottled grey. There is little wind and it is cool. Onto Butts Bridge. The water level in the River Lugg has fallen and it is clearer. A Mistle Thrush flies up from Easters Meadow to the top of a tree. A Robin ticks in the bushes. Carrion Crows call. A pair of Mute Swans are on the river. Just two of the dust carts and the last army desert Landrover are in Brightwells’ compound.
The market is small, both vendors and purchasers deterred by the unreliable weather. A few Scaly Earthballs fungi grow at the foot of a conifer by the OK Diner car park. The Pond Skaters on the River Lugg have all disappeared. Into Paradise Walk. A Yew hedge is crowned with the silken flowers of Old Man’s Beard. They will soon split to reveal the fluffy seeds. The mace-like heads of Ivy are opening to reveal tiny yellow flowers. The River Kenwater is flowing swiftly and the river bed can no longer be seen. Into Bridge Street car park where a Crane Fly sits motionless on an electric car charging point. The flock of feral pigeons races round and round over the town centre.
Rain returns in the afternoon and continues throughout the night.
Monday – Home – Overnight rain drifts away, but does not completely stop. I press another 2½ gallons of apple juice for cider. A young Grey Squirrel runs away in panic as I go to the shed. A Chiffchaff is calling but its song is very disjointed and weak, maybe a young bird.
long last, a fair amount of rain. The garden is finally wet. By mid-afternoon it has warmed up and quite humid. Clouds still linger overhead. Down to Pinsley Mill. Jackdaws chack on the rooftops. All but the very tops of the Rosebay Willowherbs have turned to fluffy seed.
closed in 1958 and finally in 1963. The town is now linked to the Manchester Metropolitan area by the tram network. In the distance is a large former mill and beyond the moors, topped by windmills, grey under a threatening sky. On the other side of the bridge is a large pedestrian area with the modern buildings of Oldham Sixth Form college. Its entrance is a stone arch originally part of Oldham Royal Infirmary which opened here in 1872 closing nearly 120 years later. Opposite is a red brick presbytery of the church of our lady of Mount Carmel and St Patrick erected in 1898. The church is in yellow stone. The Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Patrick was built 1869-70 to the designs of Mitchell of Oldham, with remodelling of 1907. By. The reredos to chancel 
is beautifully decorated and stained glass in east windows. The church is open but a service will start soon so I do not stay. St Patrick’s school stood next to the church but has gone.
edifice with terracotta dressings, and recessed polygonal towers over marble entrances, but alas it is empty and covered with bushes growing out of the stone work. A large yellow stone building has “Lyceum” on one portico and “Science and Art” on the other. The Lyceum was built in 1856 and the Art School added in 1881. Pennington of Manchester was the original architect. Across the road is the former Post and Telegraph Office built in 1877. An impressive stone building with 
fine entrance but a heavily bolted door and boarded up windows was the Masonic Hall built around 1880. Next to is the United Reform Church of 1877. Next to that is a bank and it is still a bank. It was built in 1892, by the Oldham Joint Stock Bank Limited by Thomas Taylor. Opposite this is the Free Public Library Art Gallery and Museum of 1883. Although the entrance is boarded up, it is obviously still in use and undergoing restoration.
numerous bushes growing out of the upper floors.
Society of Friends; founded in 1867 and closed in 1942. The building became the “Oldham Junior Tech” between about 1946 and 1951. A large ornate stone building is now a bar. Across Union Street and behind the Old Post office is the museum. Two large stone scrolls and two large stone lions stand outside the old museum. Further on down the street is the modern museum. The galleries have local interest and art. A display is called “Ocean Drifters”, a host of giant jellyfish from inflatable artists Designs in Air. At the back, over the library is a large natural sedum roof. On a platform outside the gallery are beehives, just beyond windows giving nice views of the busy creatures.
upper reservoir can hold 1,087 million litres of water whilst the lower reservoir holds 623 million litres. They still supply Oldham with drinking water. A Roman fort was built here in 79 CE it was built of turf and timber and housed an auxiliary cohort of 500 men. It was abandoned after 15 years but the site was reused in 105 CE for a smaller fort. It was again abandoned in 125CE and the troops probably sent north to Hadrian’s Wall. There is evidence of a vicus, a civilian settlement next to the fort. In the Middle ages, the valley formed part of “Friarmere” owned by the abbey of Roche. After dissolution in 1538 the land was sold to Arthur Assherton. By the late 18th century textile production had reached the valley and by 1800 there were eight woollen mills in the Valley, all water powered by the fast flowing Hull Brook.
fortlet. The ground markings are modern to show the layout of the site.
1869 by A E Perkins. The lych gate dates to the 16th century or even earlier. On the churchyard is the church cross, probably mediaeval. It has a square base and part of octagonal shaft. It is now used as a sundial which was restored to celebrate Victoria’s Jubilee of 1887. Inside, the font was given by Thomas Bisse (who played an important role in establishing the Three Choirs 
Festival) and dated 1722. There is a large chest with iron straps and hinges and two with fleur-de-lis ends. It is probably mediaeval. The nave benches are plain, of 1869, but the choir stalls have ends with poppy heads, some of which are 16th century. A wooden screen is in between the nave and chancel. The east window shows the Resurrection in bright colours, possibly by Frederick Preedy.
fine Victorian house. 20th century houses have been built along the track with one early 18th century cottage.
the houses are now older. Cradley chapel has a flight of steps to a second floor entrance. It still holds weekly services. A neighbour tells me the building is a 
Buddleia flowers. Easters Wood is being thinned and draft horses are being used to clear the logs. Robins sing. Along the path beside the paddocks. Flies buzz around my head, an increasingly rare occurrence. A Common Buzzard is mewing somewhere high on Eaton Hill. A new gate has been installed to replace the stile when the path reaches the A44. It is an initiative by Leominster Walkers are Welcome and sponsored by Transition Leominster.
the old A44 road bridge. A Carrion Crow bobs as it caws at the top of a dead tree. On the far side of the bridge are a few Blackthorn bushes. I gather some sloes to add to those in the gin at home. Onto Worcester Road. A large animal transporter passes with “moo” as part of its registration plate.
around. It is a substantial ruin. A bridge crosses the River Tees, a site of a ford used by the Romans. The castle stands high above this bridge on a plateau, clearly an important defensive site. The first castle was probably established by the Picard knight Guy de Balliol. He had supported William II in the suppression of a rebellion in Normandy in the 1090s, and received estates in north-eastern England as a reward. Between 1125 and 1185 his nephew Bernard de Balliol and his son Bernard II extended the 
building. In 1296 the castle was passed to the Bishop of Durham. Around 1300 Edward I granted it to the Earl of Warwick. In the 15th century the castle passed by marriage from Anne Beauchamp, 16th Countess of Warwick to her husband, Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick. In 1477 during the Wars of the Roses, Richard, Duke of Gloucester took possession of the castle by right of his wife, Anne Neville. During the rebellion of the Earls of Northumberland and Westmorland in 1569, the castle, which was then the property of the crown, was garrisoned by Sir George Bowes, of Streatlam. During the Civil War, the castle was besieged by Cromwell, to whom, after a severe cannonading, the garrison surrendered. After frequent grants and reversions, the castle, lands, and appurtenances, were purchased by Sir Henry Vane the Elder, ancestor of the Duke of Cleveland, himself a Viscount Bernard along with Raby Castle for £18,000. He chose to make Raby his principal home and de-roofed and removed stone from Barnard Castle to repair and maintain Raby.
church. The church is a simple two cell structure and is largely as it was originally built in 650-700CE, though the south porch, with its ancient cross fragments, is a much later 14th century addition. The masonry of large blocks and quoins is partly made up of Roman stones from nearby Binchester, Vinovium, fort, but the walls are constructed in the Saxon style of long and short work. It was restored between 1875-80 by R J Johnson and in 1965 by Sir Albert Richardson. A Saxon sundial is believed to be the oldest in the country still in its original position built into the south wall, and a later 17th century sundial on the porch. Besides a beast and a fishtailed serpent, there are only three marks on the dial, showing the early monks’ three principal times of worship. A Roman arch leads to the chancel. The font is probably 12th century.
originally built in 1843 and rebuilt in 1857 as more routes were created. The River Wear and the River Gaunless run around the edge of the town. The name derives from Alclyde meaning “cliff on the Clyde”, which may have been the old name of the Gaunless. The “Bishop” part relates to its ownership by the Bishops of Durham. In 1083, Bishop William de St-Calais expelled a number of canons from Durham. Some of these settled in the area and established a collegiate church. Around 1183 Bishop Pudsey established a manor house in the town, with a great hall being completed in 1195 on the site occupied by St Peter’s Chapel today. Bishop Bek, who preferred the town as his main residence over Durham Castle due to its proximity to hunting grounds, later converted the manor house into a castle. At the end of the Civil War, Auckland Castle was sold to Sir Arthur Hazelrig, who demolished much of the castle, including the chapel, and built a mansion. The town grew in the Victorian period mainly through coal mining and ironworking. The end of heavy industry meant the town turned to retailing but the growth of large out of town malls led to the decline of this trade. The town is now developing tourism.
building on this site schoolroom and house in 1864. Extensions were added in 1873-4 to accommodate boarders and a front block in 1897 with the addition of technical workshops and physical laboratory. The 1864 building was by Austin of Newcastle, probably Thomas Austin.
incorporated to generate additional revenue. The main structural elements are tied cast-iron arches. It was built by the Hawks family from 5,050 tons of iron. George Hawks, Mayor of Gateshead, drove in the last key of the structure on 7th June 1849 and the bridge was officially opened by Queen Victoria later that year. Trains still use the top deck but only buses and pedestrians use the lower deck. Beyond is the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge of 1981 and the King Edward bridge which was opened in 1906. On the far side is Newcastle castle.
until the early hours. I harvest some more beetroots and courgettes. A refrigerator drawer is half filled with pears and there are still a lot on the tree. A new, heavy duty stake is hammered into the ground and a rope pulls the pear tree up into a slightly more upright stance. Some lettuces and pak choi are planted out under a polythene cloche. Basil is cropped and turned into pesto.
Midlands have suffered flooding again. Here, the wind has dislodged lots of conkers from the great Horse Chestnut overhanging the garden. A skein of Canada Geese flies over.