Dateline

Boston, Lincolnshire

Birthday Bash for the Boston Stump

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Rev. John Cotton[/caption]

WE TOLD THE STORY in “A Tale of Two Bostons” (British Heritage, May 2008). Now, Boston, Lincolnshire, is celebrating the 700th anniversary of St. Botolph’s Church—known familiarly as the “Boston Stump”—from which Rev. John Cotton inspired the emigration to Massachusetts Bay in 1630. The event programming runs throughout the year and includes a grand festival concert in September and a grand anniversary dinner in October. Americans, and particularly, of course, Bostonians, are being warmly invited home for the commemoration.

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For seven centuries, the 272-foot-tall tower of the “Boston Stump” has risen from the Lincolnshire fens.[/caption]

Mayfair, London

Park Lane Pedestrianized?

RUNNING ALONG the east side of Hyde Park from Marble Arch to Hyde Park Corner, Park Lane has long been thought of as one of the city’s premier avenues, and the address of some of London’s sleekest hotels. In recent years, of course, Park Lane has more resembled a race track than a tree-lined avenue. Now, all that could change.
A hallmark project in Mayor Boris Johnson’s big plans for London’s roads and transport (titled Way To Go) would see Park Lane converted into a pedestrian boulevard. Shops and restaurants would line the leafy development, and traffic would make the route from Marble Arch to HPC underground.

And Just in Passing

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World Whisky of the Year[/caption]

Only the Good Stuff!
Not surprisingly, it was a Scottish single malt that was given this year’s title “World Whisky of the Year.” Whisky Bible 2009 gave Ardbeg Uigeadail, distilled on the Isle of Islay since 1815, the highest rating ever awarded. The judge described tasting it as “one of the great moments in my whisky life.”

In Other Whisky News
A bottle of Ballantine Scotch recovered from SS Politician, which ran aground off Eriskay, Outer Hebrides, in 1941, sold at auction recently for £2,200. Retrieved from the sunken ship in 1970, it is believed to be the last unopened bottle from the famous wreck that inspired Compton MacKenzie’s novel Whisky Galore.

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Basil Radford considers the bounty.[/caption]

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It’s time to fix the royal roof.[/caption]

Queen’s Royal Palaces Need £32 Million in Repairs
Even the Crown is being pinched by the economy. In a report critical of the Government, MPs decried the management of Britain’s royal palaces. The watchdog committee determined that the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, responsible for the upkeep of the 360 royal buildings, has let them crumble, with a £32 million backlog in deferred maintenance.
Both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, among the most popular tourist attractions in Britain, require extensive roof repairs—Buckingham Palace’s to cost £16 million. A falling piece of masonry last year nearly clunked the Princess Royal as she got out of her car.

Robertson’s Jam Leaving the Breakfast Table
A table fixture for generations, Robertson’s jam is being discontinued after 144 years on grocers’ shelves. The manufacturing company has decided to focus on its Hartley brand instead. Scottish grocer James Robertson started the sweet business behind his Paisley shop in 1864.

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The disappearance of Robertson’s jam is the loss of yet another icon of British life.[/caption]

Alstone, Somerset

Britain’s Bullock Biggest in the World

UNLESS ANOTHER bull steps forward, Britain’s crowned biggest bullock claims the title. The 6-year-old Charolais bull, named Field Marshall, tips the scales at more than 3,500 pounds. Heavier than most cars, Field Marshall stands better than 6.5 feet tall and is still a growing teenager.

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Farmer Arthur Duckett is dwarfed by his record-setting, Charolais pet.[/caption]

Barra, Western Isles

Britain’s Far Out Village of the Year

THE SMALL ISLAND of Barra is the southernmost isle in the archipelago of the Outer Hebrides. Its village community has the only scheduled air service in the world that lands on a beach. It’s about an hour from Glasgow. The other way to visit this year’s Calor Gas Village of the Year is a five-hour ferry ride from Oban.
The 1,300-strong, mostly Gaelic-speaking community boasts a healthy economy from tourism and fishing, four hotels, a community radio station, local ceilidhs, healthy schools and no crime. Its people are known for self-sufficiency and community spirit. Those North Atlantic gales may keep Barra absent the trees and flowers that adorn most stereotypical villages of the year, but her residents insist there is no better place in the world to live.
Calor Gas Ltd. started running a competition in England 12 years ago, but this is the first year an overall British winner was chosen. All communities of 5,000 or less were eligible.

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An hour’s flight from Glasgow lands you on the shores of Barra.[/caption]

Somersby, Lincolnshire

And Happy Birthday, Dear Alfred

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Alfred, Lord Tennyson took early inspiration from the Lincolnshire wolds.[/caption]

THIS IS A GOOD YEAR for Tennyson fans to visit Lincolnshire: 2009 is the 200th anniversary of the birth of Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Born August 5, 1809 in the Lincolnshire wolds village of Somersby, Tennyson became one of the most central cultural figures of the 19th century. Plans to honor the great Victorian poet in his native county include a major exhibition at The Collection in Lincoln, running from June through August. The annual Lincolnshire Wolds Walking Festival includes many Tennyson-themed walks in this year’s May 16-31 program (www.woldswalkingfestival.co.uk), and there is a Tennyson theme to this year’s literary festival, Wolds Words, in October (www.woldswords.org.uk).

Peasmarsh, East Sussex

Sir Paul Provides Sanctuary for Boar

THE LARGEST breeding population of wild boar in Britain, believed to number as many as 400, roam in East Sussex and West Kent—including on Sir Paul McCartney’s 1,500-acre estate in Peasmarsh. Scores of boar, weighing up to 900 pounds each, are wreaking havoc with crops, trees and gardens. Despite pressure from locals who want to cull the menacing swine, Sir Paul, animal rights campaigner and vegetarian that he is, declines to have the boar disturbed on his estate.

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Paul McCartney’s sensibilities are insensible to the cries of neighboring farmers plagued by wild boar.[/caption]

And Just in Passing

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Britain Cheers Saving Imperial Measure
After years of bickering with the EU over metric measurement, Britain has won agreement to keep measuring its road distance in miles and serving beer in pints. The decision was greeted with nearly universal joy in the UK. In true British fashion, the nation went out for a pint or three to celebrate. Walking, we hope.

Woolworths Gets the Sack
A staple of High Streets for 100 years, Woolworths (or “Woolies”) has become a victim of changing retail patterns and a tired business model. Its 807 stores around the country closed their doors for the last time this winter, leaving 27,000 staff unemployed and millions more longing for the good old days when sixpence counted for something.

Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire

Wedgwood Shatters in Hard Economy

THE MAKER OF Wedgwood and Royal Doulton china, as well as Waterford crystal, has failed to find a buyer and collapsed into bankruptcy. For 250 years Wedgwood has been an iconic name— since Josiah Wedgwood opened his eponymous pottery works in Stoke-on-Trent in 1759.
Waterford Wedgwood PLC joins Woolworths, Whittard of Chelsea, Royal Worcester and Hardy Amies, among other recognized British brand names, in receivership. Wedgwood operations are expected to continue while a corporate buyer is sought.

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Some 600 artisans still make china for Wedgwood in the potteries city of Barlaston, Stoke-on-Trent.[/caption]

Newhaven, East Sussex

London to Paris on Le Grand Cycle Path

COUNCILS IN BRITAIN and France plan one of Europe’s largest cycle paths, to run a 218-mile bike trail between London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral and Notre Dame in Paris. With the backing of local authorities on both sides of the channel, officials hope to have work done on the multimillion-pound cycle path in time for the London 2012 Olympics.
In Britain, the traffic-free path will lead south from the city via Wandsworth and Croydon to Surrey and West and East Sussex. Cyclists will follow the scenic “Cuckoo Line” railway track between Hailsham and Polegate, pass near Glyndbourne and ride through Forest Way Country Park from East Grinstead to Groomsbridge before catching the channel ferry for Dieppe at Newhaven.

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Once you actually get out of London, it’s a pleasant country ride to the Channel.[/caption]

And Just in Passing

Fire Blazes at Bacon Factory
Ah, the scent of flame-toasted pork! It happened on the Lodge Farm industrial estate in Northampton, when more than 40 firefighters were summoned to tackle the blaze on a cold Tuesday morning. One can only imagine the breakfast those hungry firefighters put down after quelling the fire.
“Buy British,” Urges Environment Secretary
With British farmers pressured by bad weather, cheap imports and declining subsidies in recent years, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn is urging consumers to be more conscious of their food origins. “I want British agriculture to produce as much food as possible,” Benn campaigns. “The answer is to buy more British and eat more British.” It’s probably healthier, too.

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A facelift for the oldest museum[/caption]

Down Time for the Ashmolean Museum
Britain’s oldest public museum, Oxford Unoiversity’s Ashmolean (1683), has shut its doors until November 2009. The Ashmolean’s world-class collections, from early Egyptian and Italian Renaissance to 20th-century art, are getting a refurbished home that will include 39 new galleries and Oxford’s first rooftop café. Builders will also be constructing a whole new front entrance for the iconic Oxford landmark.

Ancient Sculpture Returned to Egypt
A stone head of pharaoh Amenhotep III (1375 BC), smuggled out of Egypt almost 20 years ago, was finally returned during a ceremony at the Egyptian embassy in London. Stolen by an antiques restorer, the sculpture had been dipped in plastic and painted black to disguise it as a cheap souvenir. The Metropolitan Police recovered the pharaoh in 1999. It had been kept in a secure location while a legal battle sought to determine the sculpture’s rightful home.

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“Everyone loves a bargain.”[/caption]

Camilla Bags a Bargain
The Duchess of Cornwall didn’t hesitate to buy a £3 second-hand wooden toy truck for her granddaughters during a visit to the Emmaus charity shop in Nailsworth. “Everyone loves a bargain,” the duchess told staff. Even the royals are paying attention.

RIP: Sir John Mortimer
The celebrated author and barrister Sir John Mortimer has died at 85. Mortimer’s prodigious career may be best remembered for his character Rumpole of the Bailey, who became a household name as an ITV series starring Leo McKern. Among many other accomplishments, Mortimer wrote the screen adaptation of the 1981 landmark series Brideshead Revisited.

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The colorful career of Rumpole of the Bailey has come to an end.[/caption]

Abergeirw, Gwynedd

Let There Be Light!

A REMOTE MOUNTAIN village in Snowdonia is beaming electrically for the first time. According to the National Grid, Abergeirw is the last British village to be connected to mains electricity. Tucked into the mountains along the Afon Mawddach north of Dolgellau, residents of the small community up until now have had to rely on diesel generators for power.
Villagers and neighboring hillfolk had raised £100,000 to help fund the power lines. It took the construction of nine substations to connect Abergeirw to the grid. Stretching five miles, the last 95 poles were erected in mid-December and the switch-on provided the village with its first ever electric Christmas.

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The Temperate House is the largest of the rare Victorian glasshouses that help give Kew Gardens its distinctive personality. Kew’s Great Pagoda, rising 10 stories and 163 feet, was erected in 1762 by William Chambers.[/caption]

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Kew, London

Kew Garden Celebrates

WITH TWO MILLENNIA in which to accumulate historic events and places, Britain always has anniversaries to commemorate.
The origins of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew are somewhat amorphous. In 1759, however, Princess Augusta appointed one William Aiton to supervise and care for the expanding gardens at Kew. That seems as good a date as any to record as the official “birth” of the famous gardens.
Kew Gardens has a variety of special events and colorful celebrations planned throughout the year. Kew’s spring celebration of 5 million bulb flowers is the biggest seasonal display in the country. The planned summer highlight is Kew’s Global Garden and Map. Details of other horticultural delights can be found at www.kew.org/events.