Thomas Hardy's Dorchester

Pat Coulter explores Dorset’s vibrant county town through its museums and literary heritage.

Factfile

•  Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova stayed at the King's Arms Hotel, Dorchester, in the 1920s when visiting nearby Abbotsbury Swannery to study the birds for her principal role in "Swan Lake".
• Amongst the many artefacts on display at the Dorset Museum is a lock of hair from T.E. Lawrence, also known as Lawrence of Arabia.
• Shire Hall, the former courthouse, is where the Tolpuddle Martyrs were held in 1834 during their trial.
• The Keep Military Museum was designed to look like a Norman castle. Built in 1879, it was the town's Victorian barracks. It brings to life military history of regiments from Dorset and Devon.

 

I ONLY have a couple days to cram 250,000 million years of history. Surely I'm not back at school swotting for exams?

Thankfully, the answer is delightfully elementary in Dorset's magnificent county town, Dorchester.

Poppy dog and I love the exciting combination of doorstep coastal capers and the historic, vibrant market town.

If you love museums, you'll find Dorchester a joy.

After all, everyone needs a rainy day Plan B, especially in rain-soaked Blighty, however outdoorsy we might be.

This compact town offers an incredible diversity of museums to explore, from to Roman dinosaurs remains, our literary past to history from far-flung locations.

Even terracotta warriors have marched into town, faithfully recreated by Chinese artists in a dedicated permanent museum in their honour.

I'm looking forward to immersing myself in the town's delights.

Our last foray to this part of the world was Dorset's neo-Georgian new town of Poundbury.

Pleasant indeed, but Dorchester, her more venerable sister, has the character of a town steeped in history.