A sharp-toothed voracious Megalosaurus threatens to engulf me with its giant jaw as I enter the Oxfordshire Museum’s Dinosaur Garden. I’m grateful that it’s only a sculpture and that its roar is silent. But it still has the power to intimidate. This dinosaur, which lived 168 million years ago was the first to be studied scientifically and its long trackways of fossilised footprints were discovered in Oxfordshire in 1997.
It is one of Woodstock’s famous residents and a prominent landmark which has attracted many visitors over the years. Behind the Grade I listed Woodstock Gate lies another – Blenheim Palace, a place of magnificence and grandeur and birthplace of the late British prime minister Sir Winston Churchill.
So why do I feel the urge to begin with a dinosaur? Bear with me, dear reader. I am more interested in its roar, or should I say the town’s roar. The dinosaur represents the past, its cry long silent, thankfully. Today I am focussing on a more important roar – a healthy positive roar which, instead of devouring the likes of unsuspecting prey, seeks to build, restore and bring health to the community. I refer to Oxfordshire’s town plethora of independent businesses and their New Year Wish for Woodstock. The year 2020 is an opportunity to roar about what they have to offer with their specialist trades and services, not only to this community, but to those visiting from far and wide.
Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Cotswold Life.
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Denne historien er fra January 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