Picking the Bones….

This ghost story was inspired after reading this post by my good friend sparkypus. And the Battle of Barnet just happened to take place at an earlier Easter. Oh, and there’s a nod toward Dickens, but the facts don’t cooperate with Christmas! The eve of the Battle of Barnet, Holy Saturday, 13 April, 1471 It was…

A TV visit to Middleham Castle….

The TV series Go Visit Castles has now dealt with Richard III’s castle at Middleham, see here. The resultant video is interesting and shows the castle in detail, including an intriguing reconstruction of the castle kitchens (see above). The tone isn’t for the highly knowledgeable, more to introduce “beginners” to the workings of a castle,…

A winter walk that ends at Middleham….

“….In tonight’s episode, Kate Bottley, a part-time Church of England priest from Sheffield, will take a historic hike through the ruins and snow-covered landscape of Wensleydale and Coverdale. As she sets off on her winter walk, the sun rises over the ruins of Jervaulx Abbey and with just a 360-degree camera in her hand, Kate walks along the banks…

Model Railways and Britain from Above….

    On the BBC news channel recently there was an item about Pete Waterman (of Stock Aitkin and Waterman fame) and his beloved model railway, which is spectacular and will feature in an upcoming showing of Timeshift on BBC 4. The episode in question is in Series 12, episode 7 of 10, entitled “The…

Dickon’s Diaries 3

The Dickon’s Diaries series was written to lighten the mood surrounding Richard III as the authors felt that there was so much tragedy and sadness regarding his life, especially the last few years. Susan Lamb has a Facebook page, Dickon for his Dames, and on meeting Joanne Larner (me!) she asked her to collaborate to…

Anne Beauchamp Countess of Warwick – Wife to the Kingmaker

Reblogged from A Medieval Potpourri sparkypus.com Anne  Beauchamp and her husband, Richard Neville, ‘The Kingmaker,’ Earl of Warwick.  From the Latin version of the Rous Roll.  Donated to the College of Arms by Melvyn Jeremiah.  Anne Beauchamp, Countess of Warwick,  daughter of Richard Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick and his second wife Isobel Despenser,  was born…

They’re going to bulldoze Middleham Castle….?

….Yes, for a dreadful moment I thought they were going to bulldoze Middleham Castle! Oh, horrors. But no, it’a a plan for bulldozing Manor Farm, the proximity of which to the castle is clear in the above photograph. If you go to this link you’ll see that “….Racehorse owners John and Jess Dance said their…

The Middleham Jewel and Richard III….

  Among the treasures going on display at the Yorkshire Museum is the Middleham Jewel (see above). Of course, the National Portrait Gallery painting of Richard III (see below) is also going on display, because Yorkshire has a great attachment to the king who, as Duke of Gloucester, lived there for many years. The Middleham…

THE TRIAL OF RICHARD III – PART TWO

REBLOGGED FROM A MEDIEVAL POTPOURRI SPARKYPUS.COM The two QCs prepare to do battleFollowing on from my earlier post.  The day had dawned – the trial commenced.  Because of the length of the trial I only give snippets here which stand out and which I think are the most pertinent/funny/excruciating. The judge addressed the jury as to…

MINSTER LOVELL HALL, HOME TO FRANCIS LOVELL VISCOUNT LOVELL

Reblogged from sparkypus.com A Medieval Potpourri https://wordpress.com/post/sparkypus.com/754 Minster Lovell at sunset @Colin Whitaker Minster Lovell Hall, Oxfordshire  lies in beautiful,  atmospheric ruins set amongst trees besides the River Windrush in the heart of the Cotswolds.     Pevensey describes these ruins to be ‘still the most picturesque  in the country’.   It was at least…