A MINI PORTILLO?
I fancy myself a mini Michael Portillo. OK, I don’t have the garish pink jacket, green trouser combo preferred by the erstwhile politician cum TV travelogue host, but I do have an 1863 Bradshaw (that’s the tatty railway guide that Mr P. consults, that lays out a town’s credentials and gives him clues re. where to stay). I’ve decided to tackle the Cotswold Line, not the whole of it, but the bit between Oxford and Worcester, and I’m going to let my Bradshaw be my guide. If you wished, you could carry on through the Malverns to Hereford, but I’ll leave that for another journey.
First, a tiny bit of history. The line betwixt Oxford and Worcester came about by virtue of an Act of Parliament of 1845 and opened six years later in 1851 as the ‘Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway’ (yes, it had industrial pretensions in those days). Railway company acronyms (OW&WR in this case) often gave the wags food for thought, and for this one they came up with the ‘Old Worse & Worse’. Then, a dozen years after the opening of the line came my Bradshaw. I’d like to say it’s a battered original like Mike’s but it’s actually a facsimile, as my budget doesn’t run to such extravagances. *note to editor*
‘DREAMING SPIRES’ (A CLICHÉ)
Denne historien er fra August 2020-utgaven av Cotswold Life.
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Denne historien er fra August 2020-utgaven av Cotswold Life.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Gloucestershire After The War
Discovering the county’s Arts and Crafts memorials of the First World War
THE WILD SIDE OF Moreton-in-Marsh
The days are getting shorter but there’s plenty of reasons to be cheerful, says Sue Bradley, who discovers how a Cotswolds town is becoming more wildlife-friendly and pots up some bulbs for an insect-friendly spring display
Mr Ashbee would approve
In the true spirit of the Arts & Crafts Movement, creativity has kept the Chipping Campden community ticking over during lockdown
The Cotswolds at war
These might be peaceful hills and vales, but our contribution to the war effort was considerable
Trust in good, local food
‘I’ve been following The Country Food Trust’s activities with admiration since it was founded’
Why Cath is an open book
Cath Kidston has opened up almost every nook and cranny of her Cotswold idyll in a new book, A Place Called Home. Katie Jarvis spoke to Cath ahead of her appearance at this year’s Stroud Book Festival STROUD BOOK FESTIVAL – THIS YEAR FREE AND ONLINE: NOVEMBER 4-8
From the Cotswolds to the world
Most people know that the Cotswolds have featured in a fair few Hollywood movies and TV series.
The Wild Hunt
In search of the legendary King Herla in the Malvern Hills
Fighting spirit amid the flowers
Tracy Spiers visits Warwick, a beautiful town that is open for business and ready to welcome visitors
Final journey
Cheltenham author and volunteer on the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR), Nicolas Wheatley, recounts the fascinating story of funeral trains